


For Want of an Heir

by FujurPreux



Category: Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, M/M, Sengoku Era, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-03
Updated: 2018-02-22
Packaged: 2018-11-08 08:31:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 54,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11077860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FujurPreux/pseuds/FujurPreux
Summary: Spoilers for the entire series from the beginning.AU where the main cast lives in the Sengoku Era and King is the nephew of Ucchii's lord, so when he comes to visit, he's named his heir and Ucchii becomes his bodyguard. They grow closer and closer as Ucchii tutors King about samurai customs and King tries to find a way to avoid becoming a warlord without hurting his uncle's feelings. Meanwhile, none of the other active Kyoryuugers are aware of each other's identities, which leads to some misunderstandings in their civilian life.And Dogold just keeps trying to steal Ucchii's body for himself.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [libbydango](https://archiveofourown.org/users/libbydango/gifts).



> This is dedicated to Libby, who did wonders for the pacing and plot of this fic. :)

It was a beautiful day, and Utsusemimaru resented every second of it. The sun had no reason to shine in a cloudless sky when his lord was convalescing in bed. If he believed the birds capable of understanding human language, he would scold them for singing and then make them pay their respects with silence. Maybe if he asked Torin to have a word with them the next time he saw him… Even though he trusted him with his life—and, more importantly, his lord's life—Utsusemimaru was still undecided on Torin's true nature. He hadn't ruled out the youkai theory just yet. But the point remained that as a bird-looking creature, he could surely provide some input in this matter.

At this point in his thoughts, Utsusemimaru gave up on trying to meditate. His mind wouldn't be at ease until he saw Moushinosuke up and walking and laughing his powerful laugh all over the castle. The physician promised that would happen soon—provided Moushinosuke rested enough, which proved to be difficult for the boisterous, energetic warlord. However, in the end, Moushinosuke had promised to stay still when he saw the concern in his retainers' faces. That had been the third miracle in this course of events, the first being that he had survived the battle and the second that they had won it at all. Therefore, Utsusemimaru felt reasonable in his fears of having used up their luck for the next decade.

Whenever he closed his eyes, Utsusemimaru saw Moushinosuke wrapped in bloodied bandages while his men carried him away from the battlefield. He himself hadn't made it out unscathed, but his injuries had only been scratches that would close in the blink of an eye.

A warrior's life was difficult, and the bonds shared with one's comrades were a double-edged sword. On the one side, it made for a tighter fighting unit, with everyone willing to have each other's backs and help whenever possible. On the other, one was forced to watch friends fall, sometimes in horrific ways. It was hard enough to bear the injury or death of a friend, but when one loved the fallen the way Utsusemimaru loved Moushinosuke, it could almost be unendurable.

His feelings for his lord didn't burn as brightly now as when they first came to be, but they remained intense and fueled Utsusemimaru's fighting spirit. His Brave, as Torin called it. He fought for the peace and happiness of his people and for his lord as well, as all samurai should do. Beyond the boundaries of duty, however, and regardless of their stations in life, Utsusemimaru fought for the man he loved. Moushinosuke never gave any indication that he reciprocated or was even aware of Utsusemimaru’s feelings, so Utsusemimaru was able to keep a respectful emotional distance. To know that he had been allowed in Moushinosuke’s company despite his humble origins was acknowledgement enough for him to be happy.

As Utsusemimaru got ready to leave the dojo, one of the servants opened the door and kowtowed at the entrance.

"My lord Moushinosuke wishes to speak with you," he said.

Utsusemimaru bowed his head slightly as he walked next to the man and he murmured, "Thank you for your hard work."

He walked through the halls of the castle with concerned strides. As a child, he couldn't have dreamed that such luxury could exist. That of solid walls and finely-crafted doors, everything covered in delicate and exquisite paintings. Much less that he one day would live in it. If he had been told that one day people would be kowtowing in front of him, he would have laughed. He didn’t particularly feel comfortable with this part of high-class life, but he didn't want to make anyone feel bad about it either. Thus, he went along with it, always careful to voice his thankfulness. Some samurai weren't above arrogance and held those of the lower classes in contempt. However, beyond trying to help them see the error of their ways, there was not much Utsusemimaru could do but try to minimize the damage using his own politeness.

Upon reaching Moushinosuke's room, Utsusemimaru took a deep breath and made an effort to become the very image of dignity before announcing himself. To be summoned so suddenly by his lord worried him. However, that Moushinosuke wanted to talk implied that he had enough energy to do so.

"Utsusemimaru! Come in!" called Moushinosuke from inside, and Utsusemimaru obeyed.

Once inside, he only dared to fix his eyes on his lord for a quick glance to make sure he had regained the color in his face. His hopes reassured, Utsusemimaru breathed more easily, and knelt at the foot of the futon. They were the only ones in the room, which he had always found austere—even if it held more possessions than Utsusemimaru's own quarters, including three fine sets of armors close to the back.

The first noise Moushinosuke made was a grunt of effort as he tried to sit up. One instant later, Utsusemimaru was at his side, supporting his back, secretly relishing in the feeling of Moushinosuke's weight in his hands as the smell of ointments and medicine filled his nose. How many opportunities did Utsusemimaru have to touch him like that? He flushed when he caught himself entertaining those thoughts, and he forced his mind to come back to the matter at hand: fretting.

"My lord! The physician said no effort just yet!"

Moushinosuke chuckled and allowed Utsusemimaru to ease him down again. "Ah. I suppose if there's anyone who can see me in such a vulnerable state and not lose respect for me, it's you."

"Never, my lord," Utsusemimaru replied, now kneeling closer to Moushinosuke's head than he had originally intended. A turn of events he wouldn't complain about. "You honor me."

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Moushinosuke replied. "You have yet to hear what I called you for." He produced a letter from underneath his pillow. "My brother's son is coming in three days. I don't know how long he will stay, but since I can’t take care of it myself, I wish to entrust his well-being to you, Utsusemimaru."

Utsusemimaru made an effort not to show any emotion on his face. Those orders meant an indefinite amount of time spent away from Moushinosuke, following the whims of a young lord he knew nothing about instead of caring for the lord he loved. Furthermore, what he knew—and had seen—of young lords wasn't always flattering. However, Utsusemimaru, bound to follow his lord's commands, bowed his head low.

"Your nephew will be safe under my care, my lord."

Moushinosuke smiled with gratitude, and Utsusemimaru felt all his efforts would be worthwhile, no matter how ill-tempered the young lord might be.

"There is one more thing, though," Moushinosuke continued. "I have decided to make him my heir."

"My lord?" 

A proper retainer should never doubt his lord's decisions, but even Utsusemimaru couldn't keep a questioning tone from his voice. So many things came to the front line all of the sudden. Why would Moushinosuke care to name an heir now, after years of ignoring his advisers? Well, because he was now aware of his own mortality thanks to his wound. 

The idea of Moushinosuke's mortality wouldn't leave Utsusemimaru's mind whenever they took part in a battle, and the samurai often thought his lord would benefit from it, that it would make him take less risks. However, as he saw it in practice, he regretted it. Now, he would do anything to spare him the pain of realizing he could one day abandon this world and everyone he loved, but there was nothing to be done now. Nothing but respect his wishes.

"It's time I have one, Utsusemimaru," Moushinosuke replied as if he could read his mind.

Utsusemimaru's eyes softened. "Yes, my lord. It is."

It was not only Moushinosuke's right to name an heir, but his duty. His land could descend into chaos if the other samurai were to dispute his place after he was gone. Even a direct relative would need to prove himself worthy. Yet, it would be easier for him if he had the right people behind his back. Utsusemimaru understood that, by appointing him his nephew's guardian, Moushinosuke recognized him as one of those key supporters. 

Yet, if the young lord turned out to be as haughty as others Utsusemimaru had met, the circumstances of his birth would certainly work against him. He would need to make sure everything was perfect for the young lord's arrival, so he would find no fault in him, regardless of his temperament. He would do his utmost to give the young lord a favorable impression of the home he would inherit. He would not let Moushinosuke down, no matter what. 

He soon left, having accepted his task, his mind racing, working out the details of a welcome fit for a king.

* * *

Utsusemimaru and Moushinosuke hadn't been alone in the room.

Once the younger samurai left to fulfill his duties, Torin came out from behind a set of armor, the only place big enough to hide his wings. 

"This will be most interesting," he said in that deep voice of his, stroking the long mustache-like strings of fur coming from the sides of his beak. "KyoryuGold guarding the son of the King of Earth."

Moushinosuke shook his head. "The most loyal member of my house guarding my family."

Torin snapped his fingers. "Both are one and the same. However, no matter the outcome of this arrangement, it will be worth watching."

Utsusemimaru had always being of special interest to Torin and Moushinosuke. They first met him when the later conquered a land where a humble family had been in the process of settling down after being chased away from other, more unstable territories. Realizing the change of masters, they dared to ask for mercy and, not being an evil person, Moushinosuke granted them land in exchange for loyalty. They had been hardworking and loyal subjects, but even if the warlord could protect them from thieves and invasions, diseases escaped his justice. 

The parents passed away, so Moushinosuke had taken in their boy as a servant. In such fashion, Utsusemimaru had soon distinguished himself by his courage and his faithfulness. By his Brave, using Torin's more encompassing terminology. Torin then took Utsusemimaru under his—literal—wing and turned him into a true samurai. Utsusemimaru earned his right to become a samurai—and he hadn't let his master down since. 

Furthermore, not only Torin, but the amazing creature known as Pteragordon also realized Utsusemimaru's potential, seeing him fit to become KyoryuGold. Moushinosuke couldn't have been more proud of his protégé. He wouldn't entrust the safety of his family to anyone else, sons of the King of Earth or not.

"Besides," Moushinosuke continued, "you said Daigo doesn't know about his father's title."

"The King hasn't deemed appropriate to tell him just yet," Torin replied, a clear hidden meaning shining from the corner of his eyes.

Moushinosuke sighed and folded his hands over his belly, avoiding the spot where it hurt. "Yes, I get it, I get it. All my people need to know is that Daigo is my heir. Nothing else."

Torin chuckled, and his expression, inhuman as it was, softened to show the fondness he felt for the injured man. Theirs was a twenty-year-old friendship that began the day Moushinosuke's older brother, Dantetsu, returned from one of his many travels. Dantetsu was unable—or unwilling, or both—to remain in one place for long. But he came back from time to time to check on his only family.

The last time, Dantetsu had a baby in his arms and a creature half man, half bird in tow, the latter on a mission to serve the newly-appointed King of Earth. Said King and young Moushinosuke didn't have the opportunity to discuss the issue in depth, though; a couple of days later, Dantetsu and young Daigo left again and hadn't returned since. Torin, on the other hand, came and went often, carrying out secret tasks for Dantetsu. Moushinosuke offered Torin his home to rest every time, which led them to discover they shared many similarities. Such as their senses of duty, of honor, of justice—and of humor. By now every member of Moushinosuke's household was used to the sight of Torin—and had grown to be wise enough to fear the jokes that ensued whenever they were together.

"Do you need anything, Moushinosuke?" Torin asked in a solicitous tone of voice.

"Only to be able to leave this room and carry on with my normal life."

Torin stroked his mustache once more, amused. "I'm afraid not even I can grant such wish. We'll have to wait for nature to run its course."

Moushinosuke groaned. "You're worse than the physician. At least he offered to make me better by whatever means necessary."

"He wanted your favor."

"And you don't?"

"I don't need it. You already like me."

"At times it is difficult to remember why," Moushinosuke replied, but his voice was warm. He sighed. "Fine. Go do whatever you need to do. Answer me only this: do you plan to reveal your real identity to my nephew?

"That will depend on many things."

"As usual." Moushinosuke frowned. "Listen, Torin, I'm not fond of keeping secrets, you know that. I am willing to do it this once because I do indeed like you, but you had better appreciate it."

Torin's beak curved upwards in a smile. Moushinosuke had never known whether he had learned it after spending time with humans or if it was natural to whatever species he belonged to. Torin deflected all questions about his past, and Moushinosuke had figured that when the time came for him to learn about it, he would learn about it. For now, though, he had stopped asking.

"I do appreciate it," Torin said, bowing before heading to the window. "I'll be back in a few days to check on you."

"You'll find me right here, my friend," Moushinosuke said, closing his eyes, his ears soon picking up the sound of Torin's wings as he flew away.

* * *

Gold wasn't the only Kyoryuuger. Black, Blue, Pink, and Green fought together with Gold, forming an efficient fighting unit. Although one that disbanded as soon as the battle was over. 

Yes, they were comrades in arms and they had each other's backs, but they lacked a center. As part of Moushinosuke's army, one of close friends who shared everything, including laughter and tears, Utsusemimaru couldn't help but notice it. Maybe that was why he accepted Pink's offer of friendship. She was the only Kyoryuuger who ever tried to reach out to the others, something Utsusemimaru should've been ashamed of—and was, whenever he stopped to think about it. But the timing was never right. As soon as they achieved a victory, each of them would go their separate ways, and that was it. Torin would watch them go, stroking his mustache, looking as if he expected the missing part of the team to materialize somehow, even if he never brought it up.

But Utsusemimaru's friendship with KyoryuPink was extraordinary for more than that one reason.

Ever since he began making a name for himself as a samurai, countless fathers had offered him the hands of countless daughters in marriage—and it must be said that many of those daughters didn't seem too displeased with the idea, either. Utsusemimaru, however, rejected them all in the politest way he knew. Not only did his feelings for his lord made the idea of spending his life with someone else unbearable but, for a reason not even he could understand, women terrified him. The mere sight of an adult woman trying to address him in any way turned one of the bravest warriors in the land into a cornered rabbit. To be fair, Utsusemimaru got frustrated with himself at times, and often thought he should make an effort to correct this particular shortcoming of his. Yet, since he didn't plan on getting married, he didn't try that hard either. 

With KyoryuPink it was different, though. Perhaps because she had proved herself as a fierce combatant and a trustworthy ally in the battlefield, or perhaps because of her enthusiastic and refreshing way of seeing the world. It also helped that she had yet to reveal her face to him. However, even when she tried to hide it, her speech and mannerisms betrayed a lady of noble origin, and though he did not wish to identify her, right now her help was exactly what he needed.

It became obvious right away to Utsusemimaru that he would need help if he wanted to properly honor Moushinosuke's nephew, ignorant as he was of the finer points of high society. Thus, immediately after his meeting with Moushinosuke, he asked Pteragordon to look for Dricera and request a meeting with Pink that afternoon. She answered favorably, so, at the appointed time, he hurried to her whereabouts in his KyoryuGold garments. Not that he had to; unlike with the other Kyoryuugers, most people knew who he was. But he did it out of courtesy, since she undoubtedly would be wearing hers.

Pteragordon landed with grace on the field close to where Dricera and KyoryuPink waited. Kyoryuugers had a special connection with their Zyudenryuu companions and could understand each other's melody. Torin had explained that the Zyudenryuu—metallic lizard-like creatures—embodied the spirits of dinosaurs, ancient creatures that once roamed the Earth who decided to linger on, to protect their beloved planet. They were also behind the Kyoryuugers' existence. They were chosen by the Zyudenryuu to help them in their mission, and the Zyudenryuu would never pick anyone unworthy. Of this, everyone could be certain.

"Ucchii!" Pink called as soon as she saw him jumping from Pteragordon's back. 

He bowed and greeted her right back, using the foreign name she insisted on using on herself to protect her identity, just as she always addressed him with that nickname. Although weird at first, by now it had become the natural way to talk to each other. 

"Amy-dono, I am humbly honored by your acceptance of my abrupt request."

She bowed back. "It's fine! I'm always happy to see you."

He smiled warmly beneath his helmet. "I can say the same."

They exchanged a few more pleasantries before Utsusemimaru explained his predicament, and she offered her expert advice in the matter. She didn't disappoint. A couple of hours later, Utsusemimaru went back to the castle, ready to face his appointed task. Pink had even recommended stores and people who would gladly help Utsusemimaru to set everything the exact way he imagined it. So now he finally felt ready. 

* * *

King came down from the ship that brought him back to Japan for the first time in years. He always felt welcome anywhere on Earth, and at home among all the people he had the fortune to meet. However, as his place of birth and the residence of his only relative other than his father, King felt the Golden Land especially deserved to be paid a visit. 

He himself had never felt the need of having a permanent place to stay, but to spend an indefinite time with a relative for a while would be a nice change of pace—and he loved changing pace and trying new things. 

He waved goodbye to the sailors, the brave people he had shared adventures with the past few months. They had become friends, and were sad to see King go. 

"Don't worry!" he told them. "We will meet again!"

"Good-bye, King." The captain, a sober British man with a thick beard, saluted. "You'll always have a place on this ship." 

All the crew members agreed loudly with that statement.

King laughed good-naturedly. "Maybe one day," he replied. Then, with one last wave of his hand, he left the docks towards the town proper.

As he walked through the streets, he nodded his head in the general direction of everyone he met. Strange, though, the way they kept staring at him. He wondered if it was because of his foreign clothes or because his fame as King had reached them. In any case, he just smiled brightly in response—which only made several jaws drop. 

He was about to stop and ask what he was missing when he heard someone nearby saying, "There is no doubt; the resemblance is uncanny."

King turned his head to find a group of samurai looking at him. One of them walked toward him while the villagers watched the scene with respect but without fear. Armed people who didn't make people scatter in terror were always good in King's book. Thus, he decided to meet the stranger halfway.

"Hello!" he said, his smile never faltering.

However, the samurai kept the serious demeanor, stopped, and bowed to him. "Kiryuu Daigo, we are samurai who follow your uncle, Lord Iwaizumi Moushinosuke. My name is Utsusemimaru, and I will be under your service during your stay."

King frowned. He enjoyed his nickname a lot, and to call him that was a conclusion people usually came to by themselves. However, just because he was called "King" didn’t mean he liked having people under his service. It was always uncomfortable, and he'd had to explain it too many times for his taste already. King just wanted people to be free and happy while being themselves, and made a note to clear this up with his uncle as soon as possible. 

Utsusemimaru straightened up. "If you please," he continued, "we have a horse waiting for you. We will escort you to the castle."

King frowned deeper, folded his arms, and then he spoke.

* * *

It surprised Utsusemimaru how easy it was to recognize Kiryuu Daigo. The young man looked so much like Moushinosuke that he could only be his relative. The same exquisite features, the same high cheeks, the same bright eyes. If he didn't know any better, Utsusemimaru would've thought him a long lost son instead. He was grateful to have been warned about his existence before meeting him, but even so the extent of the resemblance still surprised him. Then, there was the matter of Daigo's appearance. Instead of the impeccably dressed young lord Utsusemimaru had anticipated meeting, the young man looked rather drab in foreign clothes. However, having spent so many years abroad, chances were that he didn't have much choice in the matter. Thankfully, Utsusemimaru had proper garments for someone of his stature waiting for him in the castle. He only hoped he wouldn’t be reprimanded too severely for keeping Lord Daigo waiting.

He went ahead to welcome him and offer him his services and the horse he'd so carefully selected. But the young lord's first words surprised him even more than his looks.

"I don't need a servant, nor an escort. However, I am very pleased to meet you all, and I hope we all become friends!" he finished with a grin.

Utsusemimaru tried very hard not to stutter.

He failed.

"But—Lord Daigo!"

"Call me King!"

"King—" Utsusemimaru began. A foreign word. He was certain he had heard it before, but its meaning escaped him. However, if Moushinosuke's nephew used it for himself, it couldn't be bad, could it? "King-dono," he continued as he tried to make sense of the situation, "I must insist to let us accompany you to the castle and your uncle. You must be very tired from your long trip."

He looked around at his comrades as he spoke. They looked just as confused as he felt, but nodded, happy to get a concrete order. 

"Fine. I would like very much to meet my uncle, after all," the young lord said, allowing them to lead him to the horses. He then mounted the one he was offered with one graceful move. Maybe not everything was lost, if his education had taken such skills into account.

"Please accept my apologies for making you wear your traveling garments on the road to the castle," Utsusemimaru ventured to add as he mounted up on the horse next to Lord Daigo’s. "We have prepared the proper attire for you to change into once we arrive."

"Proper?" Lord Daigo tilted his head as he looked down at his own clothes. "Thank you, but there's no need for that. What I have on now is comfortable enough!"

"But—"

"What's this fine fellow's name?" Lord Daigo, satisfied with his previous response, turned his attention to his horse, and began trying to guess the beast's name.

"Perhaps this task will be challenging in a different way from what I expected," Utsusemimaru thought as the group rode back to the castle. Far from the haughty lord he had expected to ingratiate himself to, Lord Daigo seemed to believe it was not just possible, but natural for a lord to dress like a ruffian, treat his horse like a pet, and become friends with his soldiers and servants. Utsusemimaru made a mental note of addressing the impropriety of his behavior as soon as they were alone. Yes, the samurai appreciated the young lord's friendly disposition, but someone of his rank shouldn't be so familiar with just everyone.

Utsusemimaru gave one firm nod to no one in particular as he reached his conclusion. It was up to him to teach Moushinosuke's heir. Yes, he would mold this man into the best lord the Golden Land had ever met. A worthy successor of Moushinosuke, just what his people deserved.

* * *

Dogold was bored. All he wanted was to wreak havoc in some village. Making people angry wasn't just the reason the Rageful Knight had been created—it was also how he passed the time. Especially if his dear Utsusemimaru got himself involved. It had been too long since the last time Dogold had been given free reign.

Though the Kyoryuugers made it difficult for any of their plans to stick for long, here he thought the Deboss Army was in a hurry to gather human feelings to wake their master. So every moment and every scrap counted. Yet, right now, he was stuck in a meeting, watching Chaos walk in circles in the chamber, scratching his chin. Well, one of his chins. The big one in the middle.

"We must hurry," he said. Of course, by 'we' he meant the Deboss Knights. "Something is about to happen. I'm not sure what, but the energies of this planet are shifting. I can feel them."

"You say that, but you don’t let me do anything about it," Dogold thought, and even in his own mind it came out as a growl. Sometimes, the fact that he was only a suit of armor played in his favor. Otherwise, he'd be rolling his eyes right then, something Chaos wouldn't appreciate. However, he did take the chance to say something he had been meaning to for a long while.

"I could do a better job if I had a better body," he snarled. "A proper one. Not a Cambrima that has to be replaced every month."

Chaos and the rest of the Knights turned to him.

"A proper body?" Luckyuro asked, his interest fueled by his need to get as much juicy gossip as he could, undoubtedly. He wasn't a Knight, but Candelira insisted on having him at her heels all the time, so Dogold and Aigallon—and Chaos himself—had to put up with him. Luckyuro wasn’t just nosy; his squeaky voice pierced Dogold's ears and made him angry. Not too difficult to accomplish, to be honest, but it was the principle of the thing.

"Ah, yes! It must be complicated to only be a suit of armor with nothing to hold you together except hijacking someone else," Candelira said before Dogold could reply to Luckyuro. She made the statement sound cheerful despite the thoughtlessness behind it. As if she couldn't take it seriously—of which Dogold was certain. This in turn made him take a deep, exasperated breath. 

Fine. The Cambrima took an exasperated breath. But, again, it was the principle of the thing.

Dogold turned to the remaining Knight. "No smart remarks from you, Aigallon?" 

The Sorrowful Knight began to sob. "It hurts me that you think of me like that. So much it makes me want to cry!"

Ah, there it was. More anger. A shame they couldn't use Dogold's feelings for Deboss; they would've met his needs ten times already. The thought of wasting resources upset him even more. What did humans have that they didn't? But whatever. Back to the matter at hand.

"Do you have any particular body in mind?" Chaos asked, having observed the whole exchange without comment. The Knights often wondered if he found them amusing or just pretended their bickering was beneath him. No one had ever dared to ask.

"I certainly do, Master Chaos," Dogold replied, the image of a particular samurai in his mind's eye. "Once I have it, I will make sure we gather energy from all the humans Master Deboss could ever need in only a few days."

Chaos considered the situation for a moment. "Very well. Go get it. And do your job while you're at it."

"Of course," Dogold replied, hitting his chest piece with his closed fist.

Ah. Only now did he regret being a suit of armor, as he felt a smirk trying to creep up on his unmoving lips. 


	2. Chapter 2

Moushinosuke realized that judging anyone by ten pages worth of words was unfair, specially when coupled with his own wish fulfillment. However, the observations made by Daigo in his letter were full of natural wisdom, one proper of someone twice his age. Whenever he mentioned what should be obvious, he presented them in a new light, offering all kind of new possibilities with the potential of changing how the reader saw the world. After reading it, Moushinosuke felt he had joined the nephew he barely knew in his journey, learning countless new things about all around him, even when the descriptions belonged to objects on the other side of the ocean. Furthermore, Daigo was Moushinosuke's blood. In fairness, if only because of it, he and no one else should become his heir.

The only ones who knew about the new line of succession were Moushinosuke himself, Torin, and Utsusemimaru—the latter also tasked with making the announcement in his lord's name during the welcome feast. Moushinosuke would have wanted to do it himself, but it was the kind of thing that should wait as little as possible. Daigo's place in the castle had to be stated clearly from the beginning, to avoid confusions and misunderstandings.

Then, the day in which he would meet his nephew arrived. Moushinosuke ordered his room to be cleaned thoroughly, to remove all the traces that would give away a sick old man—except for the sick old man himself. No need for him to be pitied more than necessary.

Impatient, that fated evening he waited for Utsusemimaru to fetch Daigo from the docks. Soon enough, he heard approaching his room not the quiet steps he expected, but loud running and people outside yelling, "But my lord!" over and over. The lack of swords clashing made it clear that it wasn't an invasion, but a concerned relative on his way.

Moushinosuke stroked his mustache, moved by the young man's concern for a mere stranger.

The door slid open in a quick motion followed by a loud clack, and a younger version of Moushinosuke walked into the room. Taken aback for a moment, the man felt like he was looking at a mirror—if mirrors could take away a few years here and there.

"Uncle!" Daigo exclaimed, hurrying to kneel at his side. "I heard you were hurt!"

Moushinosuke smiled and waved a hand to dispel Daigo's worries. "I appreciate your concern, nephew. I'm much better now, thank you, and I can only continue to improve as time marches on."

Daigo placed his satchel on the floor and rummaged through it. "A friend gave me this medicine that's great for all kinds of cuts and bruises. I've used it before and it really works…"

As Daigo kept talking about the wonders of the jar he had just produced from his satchel, Moushinosuke heard the door closing. Less dramatically than when it opened, and this time followed by a careful click. He recognized Utsusemimaru's figure outside and felt a pang of gratitude for the young samurai, who had waited until he was sure everything was fine before giving them privacy. The warlord made a note to commend him later. But, right now, he had business to attend with his heir. Like informing him about his new title.

* * *

Utsusemimaru had never felt so angry at himself before. Lord Daigo had been under his care for less than an hour and he'd already failed him in a miserable way.

The group arrived to the castle without an incident, and lord Daigo was safe. Utsusemimaru had wanted to find a good moment to take him apart and tell him about his uncle's condition once they got there. However, before he could do it, one of the servants mentioned it in passing while they dismounted. Just when lord Daigo was so happy about finally guessing the horse's name—Yuuki. Not because of ill intention, but due an oversight originated from the little ways the events of the day deviated from Utsusemimaru's plan. If the samurai could go back in time and find a way to deliver the news in a more delicate fashion, he would.

The surprise and worry in lord Daigo's face had been as real and deep as if he had been raised by Moushinosuke instead of growing up without ever knowing him. This brought both relief and self deprecation to Utsusemimaru's heart. The love of one's family. Nothing could beat such reassurance, and Utsusemimaru often missed it.

Right now, though, he could only guard the entrance to Moushinosuke's room, which faced one of the most beautiful gardens in the castle. The pond, the simple bridge that crossed it in a graceful arc, the plants, and even the rocks had been placed thoughtfully by a smart hand in such a way it seemed like everything was where it belonged in the most natural of ways. Like in one of the paintings on the halls. Not a single element was out of place. Such thing would have appealed to Utsusemimaru's sensibilities and brought comfort to his heart if hadn't been caught in a gloomy mood.

"Is everything all right?" he heard all of a sudden in a concerned and vaguely familiar voice.

Utsusemimaru looked up to find one of the men he hired days before under KyoryuPink's advice. A competent craftsman with a peculiar sense of humor and a mop of hair that made him look like he lived exposed to a hurricane. A simple man who lived to look after his widowed sister and her child—and who had found his way to the quarters of the lord of the castle without permission. At that precise moment, only Pink's word stood between him and a dungeon. Or between the guards who let him pass all the way there and the dungeon, for that matter.

Or both.

Besides, no assassin could have ever faked the look of a worried father Udo Nobuharu carried in his eyes.

Utsusemimaru felt himself flush as he grew self-conscious. He wasn't often the recipient of such looks and yet he met them more often than he would have expected in his adult life.

"Everything is all right," Utsusemimaru lied, aiming for an expression as impenetrable as the ones he often saw on monks. Then, he frowned. "What are you doing here, Nobuharu-dono?"

Nobuharu half grinned, half grimaced and scratched the back of his head. "Ah! I got lost, sorry. I was on my way to the banquet hall, but must've made a mistake somewhere. Who would've thought two right turns _do_ make a wrong?"

Caught off guard, Utsusemimaru abandoned his stern visage to wince. He managed to repress a groan, though.

Even when he couldn't fault the man for getting lost in the castle—with its the size and how labyrinthine it could be—, he didn't feel like humoring him. Besides, Nobuharu needed to get to the hall as soon as possible. The celebration in honor of lord Daigo's arrival would take place in a couple of days, and every detail needed to be perfect.

The samurai gestured to his left with his open palm and proceeded to give the proper instructions for Nobuharu to reach the banquet hall. The man listened, nodding at every word, and bowed his thanks once Utsusemimaru finished.

"Oh, by the way," Nobuharu added unprompted before leaving. "If you ever need to talk with someone, I'm always available."

What an odd thing to say, and yet it found an echo in Utsusemimaru's heart. It surprised him how much he needed to hear those words.

He bowed. "I will keep it in mind. Thank you."

The man smiled. "Don't mention it. But you better do it!"

Utsusemimaru was then left alone once more, but with his spirit lifted. How wonderful it was to find good and caring people in this world. It made it truly worth protecting.

* * *

What a relief it had been to see his uncle awake and strong enough to talk after hearing he had been hurt in battle. King wondered for a moment why Utsusemimaru hadn't told him, but then realized that he probably wanted them to reach the castle and do it properly. He couldn't fault him for wanting to spare his feelings, just as he couldn't fault the person who mentioned it. Everyone in the castle seemed to like his uncle and have his best interests in mind.

_They just need to get better at communicating. That's all_ , he thought before focusing on telling his uncle about the medicine his friend from Egypt got him. It was really good, and it made King happy to see the man accepting the jar and placing it next to his pillow.

"You'll see how it helps!" he finished as he tried to take a peek of the bandages underneath the robes. They bulged, indicating a large injury. But not a dangerous one. Rest and medicine would take care of it, and King could ask later for the welcome hug he wanted.

"I am moved by your concern, Daigo," Moushinosuke said. "I promise I will use your medicine. Now, though, there is a matter of some importance that I wish to discuss with you."

King cocked his head. "What is it?"

Moushinosuke looked straight into King's eyes. "I have decided to make you my heir."

" _What?!_ " King exclaimed, as loud as his lungs let him, dragging the vowel to show the length of his surprise as he fell backwards from his kneeling position, landing on his butt.

The door slid open again, and Utsusemimaru charged in, his hand on the hilt of the sword he carried on his back, as if ready to slay anything—or anyone—in his path.

"My lords?" he asked, worried, as he scouted the room.

"It's all right!" Moushinosuke exclaimed in turn. "The news I just shared with Daigo caught him off guard and overwhelmed him."

Well, of course King felt overwhelmed. He came here to visit family, not to get a lordship of his own. Granted, it wasn't his yet, but…

Moushinosuke reached up and gave him awkward pats on his shoulder. "Someone has to take care of the land and its people when I'm gone. It has to be you."

"But you're still here, uncle!"

"For which all of us are grateful," Utsusemimaru murmured. He took a seat on the other side of Moushinosuke, his eyes fighting a not-at-all subtle battle between avoiding to stare at the man and really wanting to do it.

"Yes, I am here," Moushinosuke agreed. "And that will give us time to prepare you for your future duties. Until I am able, however, Utsusemimaru will take care of it."

"My lord," Utsusemimaru replied, bowing so low his forehead all but touched the tatami.

Meanwhile, King, still on his butt, folded his arms. "I'm not sure I can make a good lord," he mumbled.

"Yet, those words are a good sign that you just might," Moushinosuke said. "I'm suspicious of everyone who is eager for power." He sighed. "Now, if you excuse me, it's getting late and you must be tired. Utsusemimaru, would you please escort Daigo to his room?"

"Yes, my lord." Utsusemimaru bowed low again before getting up. As he did, he looked at King as if expecting him to do the same.

King pouted. It seemed like neither of them cared about his opinion. So he bowed to Moushinosuke—not as low as Utsusemimaru had, though—and stood up. "I'll see you tomorrow, uncle. Please rest."

"I have little else to do," Moushinosuke sighed again, although now more dramatically and for effect. "But yes, please. Come by tomorrow for breakfast."

As they left the room, Utsusemimaru made a point of closing the door with care as King, for the first time, paid attention to how the castle actually looked like. He'd been to busy running around looking for his uncle before, but it was a nice place, full of life and good people with good intentions, his uncle included. King, then, decided he liked this land, despite everything.

He stretched his muscles and that felt so good he had to make happy noises. "What a beautiful garden this is," he told Utsusemimaru.

"It certainly is," Utsusemimaru replied. He had folded his arms, concealing his hands in his sleeves. "Lord Da—ah. King-dono," he corrected himself. "If I may, those movements are not proper for someone of your rank."

"Why not? They feel nice."

Utsusemimaru made a pause as if he he tried to find the right words to deliver bad news. "We don't do things just because they feel good, King-dono. We need to take into account decorum and the proper etiquette. I'll start telling you all about it while we go to your room. Besides, there is still the matter of your garments."

Yes, those were bad news. When King first thought of visiting his uncle, he didn't know what to expect, but it was certainly not this. However, he couldn't deny he was always after new adventures, and this had to be his biggest one yet. Well, he would do his best to see this one to completion. He had nothing better to do and nowhere else better to be, after all. So he followed the samurai, doing his best to pay attention.

It turned out that Utsusemimaru had a lot of knowledge to impart and that castle etiquette was intricate and boring, making this not only King's biggest adventure yet, but also the most challenging. But he would do it. For family. And thus, for family, he stifled a yawn and got into a kimono.

However, the adventure reached a point where King stumbled on the need to protest.

"Do I really have to wear my hair up?"

Utsusemimaru, stopped his speech about the samurai families who had pledged fealty to his uncle so he could make an affirmative noise and add a quick, "It's fashionable," before resuming it. All while continuing to comb the hair of the man kneeling in front of him.

King whined, and for so many reasons. He would rather meet all those people and find out who they were by himself instead of wasting his time listening to a list of random facts about them.

Under normal circumstances, King refused to do anything he didn't feel like doing, and right now he wanted his uncle to reconsider the decision of making him his heir. Yet, achieving it by embarrassing the man in front of his friends would be the wrong path to take. Never mind just plain rude.

"You're going to stay close all night during the party, right, Utsusemimaru? To remind me of all of anything I might forget."

Utsusemimaru's fingers hesitated for an instant before he finished tying the bun on top of King's head. It was barely noticeable, but King did anyway—and not only because the samurai's warm and swift fingers felt good against his skin—, and instantly regretted having asked. Maybe Utsusemimaru had more important things to do than walk him through a social engagement. Like spending time with Moushinosuke.

"You don't have to, though!" King hurried to amend. "You can go wherever you want at any time! I'm sure I can survive the evening on my own."

Utsusemimaru began putting away the grooming implements. "It will be my honor to remain by your side, King-dono," he replied, politely.

King pouted. "I can respect that. But it's different from you wanting to."

"To follow your request does not go against my wishes," Utsusemimaru replied. He hadn't moved from behind King and yet his thoughtful frown was easy to picture. "My assignment is to act as your bodyguard, and I am happy to fulfill my duty."

King pouted harder. He could feel that Utsusemimaru was being honest with him, but only to a degree. However, he decided not to push it—nor to push _him_ away. They could still become friends, and King would like to hear Utsusemimaru laugh sometime. He had a nice voice, so his laughter could only be just as pleasing to the ear. By the time he went to sleep, a couple of hours later, King had decided to make it his goal for the near future. How hard could it be?

* * *

A feast's intention was to provide merriment to the guests. Therefore, as far as manners and etiquette went, such shouldn't provide a challenge, specially not to someone with outstanding social skills such as lord Daigo. However, Utsusemimaru's goal was to prepare the young lord for a long life of ruling. According to his appreciations, that wouldn't be easy in part because of lord Daigo's temperament, and in part because of how reluctant he seemed about the whole thing. He needed to understand the importance of his new mission in life—and how many people depended on it, and what the consequences would be if he refused it. Thus, the samurai spent the first night following lord Daigo's arrival thinking about this.

By the next morning, he had a plan. He would show up earlier than the sun to rise his charge and take him to train with the sword before escorting him to share breakfast in Moushinosuke's room. A man's character could be properly judged by the way he wielded his sword. Besides, as far as Utsusemimaru's personal experience went, combat practice was one of the best moments to drop life-changing lessons and metaphors.

Sooner than later, though, Utsusemimaru would run out of things he could teach the young lord. But he felt reasonably secure that he could appoint other mentors to fill in the blanks. And that lord Daigo would trust him enough to listen to them.

So far, lord Daigo had been informed about the samurai families loyal to his uncle. He would continue his education today learning about the servants and what was the right way to address and treat them.

Yes, Utsusemimaru had carefully mapped out every step of the way.

Except for what to do when the first one went amiss.

Contrary to what he expected, when he opened the door to lord Daigo's quarters to let in the sun of the early morning, he found it empty.

Stricken by panic, fearing that the idea of the responsiblities he didn't want made lord Daigo run away in the middle of the night, the first thought in Utsusemimaru's mind was how he would break the news to Moushinosuke. The second was that perhaps he had still the chance to catch up with the young lord and chastise him about his lack of courage, in which case Moushinosuke wouldn't have to find out about it. But he needed to hurry.

So hurry he did. He ran to the stable to fetch a horse as fast as his legs would carry him, while at the same time composing a strongly-worded speech. How dared lord Daigo spit on the way of lord Moushinosuke's dream? "The land and its people need a better man to take care of them," he muttered. "It is my wish you can grow to become him, although it is now when you decide between making you uncle proud or walk away in… shame."

As he reached the stable, Utsusemimaru stopped, feeling that same shame he spoke about washing all over him. Lord Daigo was right there, brushing Yuuki and conversing cheerfully with the stable hands—and without any obvious intention to abandon the premises.

The samurai had never yearned for his KyoryuGold helmet more than in that moment.

Even if lord Daigo would never know about his disgraceful assumptions, Utsusemimaru vowed to make it up to him.

"Utsusemimaru!" lord Daigo called, beckoning him to approach when he saw him. Even if his hair was down again, he wore the yukata, and Utsusemimaru knew that would be the best he could get out of him that day.

Humbly, Utsusemimaru lowered his head as he approached—taking care too of wishing a good morning to the stable hands surrounding the young lord.

"I was looking for you, King-dono," Utsusemimaru said, relieved because he spoke the truth. "I hoped you could honor me by joining me during sword practice before breakfast."

"Ah! Of course!" lord Daigo replied, all smiles. "Just let me finish here."

Utsusemimaru bowed again and reached for another brush to help with the horse to distract himself from his secret embarrassment. Thankfully, though, lord Daigo involved him in the conversation with the others. It didn't take long for him to gather courage and look up at the young lord's face again. At his swift, long-fingered hands, one working the brush and the other gently patting the horse's neck.

_If this is how he treats an animal, how will he touch a lover?_

Realizing the inappropriateness of his thought, Utsusemimaru shook his head, pinched the bridge of his nose, and hid his face behind the horse's flank so no one could see his flushing face. He bid himself to rein back his wandering thoughts and focus on more pertinent matters.

The events of this morning had been a sobering experience. Utsusemimaru had fancied himself a good judge of character. However, his reading of the situation and of lord Daigo's character couldn't have been more wrong. The samurai had grown self-complacent. He had to be more careful before casting judgment, and never doubt Moushinosuke's blood again.

By the time they finished, Utsusemimaru's mood had changed from somber and repentant to something resembling calm—good enough at least to move on with his day without without feeling faint from embarrasment every other step. Most of it thanks to the young lord's good nature and natural cheerfulness. It was hard not to feel drawn to it, and to how natural it seemed to come to him. Utsusemimaru wasn't the only one either; everyone who exchanged words with lord Daigo felt instantly charmed by him and wished to spend more time in his company. He had a way to listen, to look at everyone and make them feel–no, to realize–that they were important. That they mattered in the eyes of this person who by right of birth could pretend they didn't even exist unless he needed something. Regarding this, Lord Daigo's only fault was the overt familiarity he extended to everyone without discrimination. That, he needed to tone down. Fine, this could be today's lesson.

"Ready!" lord Daigo called once he placed his brush back to where he took it.

Utsusemimaru did the same and guided the young lord to the dojo. They walked in silence, with the samurai a couple of steps behind as it was customary. Lord Daigo kept his hands on the back of his head, humming a song that sounded new to Utsusemimaru's ears, yet vaguely familiar. Not wanting to interrupt—even if the posture was unlordlike—, he decided to leave lord Daigo be and ask about the name of the melody later, and if there were any words to it.

Regardless, this was nice. Everyone—and everything—had a place in the world. To think about it, to live it, brought comfort to the samurai's mind and heart. His future master needed but a mere push to see things how they were, and he was willing to give it.

"Ah. I'll have to ask you to be patient with me," lord Daigo said as he entered the dojo. "Fighting is fun, but all the martial arts teachers I've had said I don't make a good student."

"Please, do not worry," Utsusemimaru replied. Being patient with the young lord was the least he could do after the misunderstanding from earlier. Besides, he was used to train beginners. "However, we don't fight for fun."

"What do you ever do for fun, I wonder," lord Daigo murmured while pouting.

Utsusemimaru pretended he didn't hear and continued. "We fight to protect the land and our people from all who may wish them harm."

"Ah! That's the serious kind of fighting! That's different!"

"I'm glad you can make a distinction," Utsusemimaru said. In any case, it was better than the alternative.

Yet, the praise got a grin out of lord Daigo, and the samurai felt a pang of affection that caught him off guard. It was different from with all his other disciples, but he shook his head and returned his focus to the matter at hand. He brought a pair of wooden swords and he offered one to lord Daigo, who grabbed it the wrong way.

Good. This, Utsusemimaru could handle.

* * *

The _fun_ kind of fighting. Right. Half an hour into practice and King already regretted so much. He endured it, though, as he had promised to himself. But who would have thought that only passing a wooden sword to one person to another involved so much protocol? He lost count of how many times Utsusemimaru made him repeat the motion. The samurai didn't seem completely pleased about it, but he probably thought they could continue later. They had a lot of time, after all. Thanks to his appointment as his uncle's heir, King would have to stay there possibly for years. _Years!_

He groaned to himself as now Utsusemimaru taught him how to stand while holding the wooden sword, corrected his posture, and then made him hold it above his head to then hit the air in front of him. All without moving the rest of his body. Not even to smile. And then again, because the part of keeping his feet still was tricky. And then again. And again. _And again_. Until King thought he could cry out of boredom.

For King, fighting—both the fun and the serious kind—was like dancing. It was all about improvising and matching what the other person did while trying to best them. He didn't need to drill the basics. He wanted to work on more complex moves, but the time he proposed it, Utsusemimaru looked at him with his deep and severe eyes and said, "It is important that the most simple movements become part of our very nature. Before, it would be prudent to avoid tasks beyond our strength and skills."

King did his best to fight his pout since he couldn't fight the samurai, and continued working.

Was this how his life would be from now on? Taking care of people was one thing, but partaking in needless ritual after needless ritual was different. King understood those things helped soothe certain people and he could respect that. However, he was too free-spirited for it. He felt constricted by the idea of spending the rest of his life in just one place—even if it was a place as nice as Moushinosuke's castle.

No. Definitely he wasn't made for this. Right then, he thought he understood why his dad left the Golden Land.

His dad. Once of the reasons King traveled the world—the path of the dinosaurs— was because he hoped one day to run into Dantetsu. As he saw it, if he stayed here, his chances decreased drastically. Besides, if he was distracted thinking about it, he couldn't take proper care of the people.

No, this wouldn't work. For everyone's sake, he needed to find a way to get out of this. Maybe he could convince his uncle to appoint someone else as his heir instead. Maybe… maybe Utsusemimaru himself, King thought, as he studied the samurai's features. Strong and secure of himself. Firm and true. A believer in discipline and decorum. Furthermore, above all he was a good man. King had a way to know that about people, an instinct that guided him through life that he had never questioned and that had never let him down.

Yes, Utsusemimaru was the better candidate for the job.

As King reached this conclusion, the samurai abruptly stopped the session, looking flustered. It was then that King realized he had been staring. He tried to apologize, but before he could do it, Utsusemimaru spoke.

"I believe it is time to join your uncle for breakfast."

King's stomach made its opinion known through a loud growl, so its owner could only agree to that. He had been awake for hours already, having helped to clean up all the stables long before Utsusemimaru found him brushing Yuuki. Besides, now that he thought about it, this could be his chance of asking his uncle if he could keep the horse, since he forgot the night before. It was a wonderful creature, full of life and energy, and King would be happy to continue their friendship for as long as possible.

"Yes, that's a great idea," he replied, grinning.

Utsusemimaru gestured to the door, and understanding his meaning, King led the way. He felt better now that he had a plan of sorts.

When they arrived, they found Moushinosuke in a great mood. He had even sat up as he waited for them.

"The physician approved of this," he said before either King or Utsusemimaru could comment on it.

The physician, an old, wise-looking man who was sitting next to the wall behind his patient, nodded. "My lord Moushinosuke is strong enough for this today. However, I will remain here, just in case," he said, the last comment clearly aimed at Utsusemimaru.

Despite of that, the samurai remained unconvinced. He glanced at his lord with worry, and bowed to both Moushinosuke and King.

"If it is your wish, my lord," he said after a second. But then he went to sit down next to the doctor. Just in case as well, surely.

King had thought to start by telling his uncle about his idea, but he got distracted by the exchange, and then the servants brought the food and everything looked and smelled so delicious that King's priorities rearranged themselves.

"Hey! Why are you in the back? Why don't you join us?" he said to both doctor and samurai.

Moushinosuke didn't turn, but he snickered. "What a great idea, nephew! You two! Come here, there is enough food for everyone."

"My lord?" the two men said at the same time, even if they hurried to join King and his uncle.

There was indeed more than enough food for four people, and both King and Moushinosuke—the latest seemingly far too amused by all of this—encouraged Utsusemimaru and the doctor to eat to their hearts' content. And so they did, after just a moment's hesitation. Soon, they were relaxed enough to have an actual good time. On top of that, the food was as delicious as it looked. However, before they could finish, the alarm bell rang.

The castle was under attack.


	3. Chapter 3

Created around a core of rage, the purpose behind Dogold's existence was to gather the anger of humans to help bring back Deboss to take his rightful place at the head of his army. However, Dogold was also capable of other emotions. Like the sheer joy he felt whenever he unleashed chaos on the general population. It was the kind of thing that made life worth living.

Right now, though, he intended to get a proper body to support the empty shell he truly was. He had his eyes fixed on a worthy warrior of this land he had fought many times before, and that he now considered his personal archenemy. There were many things that attracted Dogold to the samurai named Utsusemimaru. Like his strength, stamina, and combat skills. Not to mention that he was KyoryuGold, one of the sworn enemies of Deboss, and having control over him would mean to have control over his Zyudenryuu. But more importantly, Utsusemimaru had a propensity to yield to his anger under the right circumstances—an essential part of the possession process.

The first step in Dogold's plan was, therefore, to gain access to an angry Utsusemimaru. He couldn't just issue a challenge to lure him out from the castle, because then Utsusemimaru would have time to prepare himself mentally. Attacking some random village would also make the other Kyoryuugers appear to help, which would in turn complicate things. The best course of action would be, then, a well-applied sucker punch. Now to figure out the right time.

Too impatient to have a proper intelligence network, Dogold still had an easy fool-proof method to gather information: take a bunch of Zourimas and threaten peasants until they talk. This time, they talked about a party being organized in the castle, and about how Utsusemimaru would be busy looking after some relative of his lord.

Best news he could have gotten. There was little that enraged Utsusemimaru more than failing his lord, so either wounding or killing his charge would do the trick. The other thing that enraged Utsusemimaru the most was hurt children. Dogold would make sure there would plenty of those, since entire families of servants abounded in the castle during the day.

Dogold sent one of the Zourima for reinforcements and waited next to the castle until morning, when everyone would be busy preparing for what they expected would be another happy day. As he waited, close to Moushinosuke's castle, the anticipation of ruining it for them made him shiver with delight.

The time came. Upon his signal, the Zourima and Cambrima launched the attack focusing on the weakest, particularly the children.

Although there was an army and several lesser samurai inside the walls, the surprise delayed their reaction. Some of them were already on the ground, wounded, before had crossed the bailey. And they were angry. Oh, so angry. A shame they all were by the entrance and not further inside, where there would be a chance for the panicked masses to trample them. Dogold filed the idea to make it happen another time.

He paraded around, looking for Utsusemimaru as he cackled and deflected all the attacks he got, making an effort to make it look effortlessly, which frustrated his attackers even more. They tried so hard and got so little. Good. Tonight's harvest would be of high quality.

But, again, this was not the main course.

"Where are you, Utsusemimaru-chan~?" he called in singsong as he looked around and did his best to filter all around him, sight and sound, that was not the samurai target of his fixation.

Right then, he realized all the Kyoryuugers sans Gold had come into the fray, making him hiss out of frustration.

"Curse you, Utsusemimaru, where are you?" he groaned. "Come out now!"

A Zourima landed at his feet, coming from the other side of the hall. He turned and saw a younger-looking, mustacheless version of Moushinosuke. Right behind him, there he was, finally, Utsusemimaru doing what he did best: fretting. The samurai, Zandar Thunder in hand, tried to clear the area around the one who was so obviously his charge. However, every time Utsusemimaru managed it, the young man jumped without hesitation in the middle of the next group of Zourimas that terrorized the next group of people. Although effective, not-Moushinosuke lacked a polished fighting technique and, even if he obviously wasn't happy about this, Dogold felt a distinctive lack of rage coming from him. It was more like a focused determination to protect those who needed it the most. If he had to guess, Dogold would say that this was a man Utsusemimaru would find worthy of being followed through the depths of hell itself.

Killing him would absolutely make up for the fact that Dogold didn't get to even be at the battle where Moushinosuke was hurt.

The Rageful Knight prepared his sword and advanced menacingly toward Utsusemimaru and his young lord, sword at the ready for the fateful strike.

* * *

King left his rice bowl aside and jumped up from his cushion ready to fight in defense of the castle at the first sign of alarm. He did it out of reflex, the first thing in his mind the safety of everyone around him, and the unfairness of this happening while he shared a happy moment with friends and family, the second.

What a treacherous and rude enemy! Taking advantage of the lord of the castle being ill to attack. Granted, from a tactical point of view, it made sense. Yet, the point remained that this was cheating and whoever it was had no business endangering the people working in the castle. He would definitely protect all their hopes and dreams and effort, King promised to himself as he got ready to leave his uncle's room.

"My lord!" both Utsusemimaru and the doctor exclaimed,looking from King to Moushinosuke, since the latest tried to get up as well, and even tried to hide the grimace that nevertheless showed up on his face.

King knelt down again and placed a hand on the man's shoulders. "Uncle! Don't worry about this! I'll take care of it! You focus on getting well."

Moushinosuke looked up at King and nodded as he place his own hand on top of his nephew's. "Go, Daigo. Chase the invaders away." He then turned to Utsusemimaru. "Go with him. I'll stay with the doctor."

"My lord," Utsusemimaru repeated and stood next to King, who was already at the door. "Let's get you an armor, King-dono."

"No time for that!" King replied as he dashed away from the room, followed by the samurai, who kept calling him by his title.

They soon reached the entrance, where the battle took place. The enemies were the strangest creatures King had ever encountered. Although they possessed human-like bodies they didn't look the part, with those strange heads and even worse hair. Which was more like algae or flat tentacles. The way their entire selves wiggled was perfect for battle; when the only goal was victory, disconcerting one's opponent became the most important matter. Not everyone believed in a fair fight. But it didn't matter how they look nor even what they were; they tried to hurt the people who looked up to his uncle for protection, and it was now King's place to answer that call in Moushinosuke's name. It was now time to engage in the serious kind of battle.

King recognized himself as strong and skillful fighter, and he would proclaim so if the situation called for it. Yet, it would be wrong to say he was proud of it—he just accepted it, as he accepted everything about himself and others. Without judgment. Only letting the world around him be. Except when the well-being of those who couldn't defend themselves was at risk.

He jumped in the middle of a group of those creatures and fought kicking and punching, opening paths and calling attention to himself so others could get away from the battle zone. He wasn't the only one to have taken action, either. Warriors from all walks of life came into the fray, including servants from the kitchens and the stables. Grateful for it, King elbowed one of the creatures out of the way before it hit one of his allies on the head.

"Moushinosuke-dono!" cried one of the samurai at his right, scared and pleading. "I beg you! Go back to bed!"

"This is lord Kiryuu Daigo," Utsusemimaru said. He had followed King all the way there, and carried on before King could corrected him about the use of honorifics and titles. "He is lord Moushinosuke's nephew, and is here to guide us in the name of his uncle!"

King nodded. This had been his intention after all, even if he wouldn't have said it with such words. However, the samurai around him seemed much more confident now, and their smiles had grown broader. There was little left to do but to fold his arms and let out a speech of his own.

"We won't let the enemy ruin our day!" he began. "We will protect our homes and our work and the people we love, and then we'll celebrate their defeat!" The warriors around him cheered and King pointed to the attackers. "Now, let's get rid of them!"

Among the loud cheer that followed, a forest of naked steel arose before the samurai charged to defend the castle.

King was about to follow them when he felt someone's gaze fixed on him. He turned to find it was Utsusemimaru's. Having been discovered, the samurai lowered his eyes, although not before King noticed how bright and in awe they were. Once more, it wasn't King's first time as the recipient of such looks, it surprised him to realize how much he enjoyed this one.

"Thank you, King-dono, for encouraging your men like this," Utsusemimaru said, bowing his head as he raised both hands to offer King a sword.

_Your men._

It sounded so strange. So definitive. Yet, thanks to his uncle, it was true. They were his men. He would have to keep leading them after the battle was over—at least until he could convince Moushinosuke to make Utsusemimaru his heir instead. The samurai had not mentioned the line of succession, so there was still time to change it.

Anyway, one thing at a time. King would keep reflecting on it once everyone was safe.

King took the sword Utsusemimaru offered with one hand and, as he unsheathed it with the other, he followed the others to earn that celebration he promised them.

* * *

As soon as he saw the enemy, Utsusemimaru's knee-jerk reaction was to take lord Daigo to a safe place and then find an excuse to return and fight, since the Zourima meant only one thing—the Deboss Army was behind it all. However, lord Daigo proved faster than Utsusemimaru's good intentions. Before the samurai could utter one word nor grab lord Daigo by the arm, the young lord became an absence at his side. There was nothing else to do but follow—and take a sword from one of the passing servants.

Half the worries Utsusemimaru had carried for the last few days faded at the very moment in which lord Daigo inspired the other samurai, delivering his short speech with charisma and confidence. Lord Daigo didn't just believe they could win. He _knew_ it, and he let the warriors know the thrust their masters had in them, which made them respond accordingly. So far, the young lord had shown himself a better leader than Utsusemimaru had expected from his previous carefree demeanor, and he would apologize for his lack of faith when the time was right. Now, though, lord Daigo had not only gracefully accepted the sword Utsusemimaru offered, but also took it the right way, just as they had practiced, before jumping back into the fight without a moment's hesitation.

Utsusemimaru remained lord Daigo's bodyguard, so, with his heart full of pride and admiration, he stared at him without shame, if only to assess how the young man would fare in a real fight.

The way lord Daigo moved had nothing to do with any fighting style Utsusemimaru was accustomed to. He seemed to go by pure instinct, instead of the calculated movements product of the years of meditation and training samurai usually went through, and he relied too much on brute force. However, his movements possessed a grace of their own, just like the young lord himself. He was unpredictable yet adaptable—the best combination possible to fight against the Deboss Army. He was agile. He was strong. It was like seeing a hurricane castigating the evildoers. Like an unstoppable force of nature.

Wild. That was the word. Lord Daigo was Wild. And Brave.

Utsusemimaru's heart raced. There was a man he could follow to the end of the Earth and back.

It was then, however, that he noticed Dogold approaching rapidly the young lord. Utsusemimaru's visage hardened as he hurried to place himself between them.

"Ah!" Dogold exclaimed with delight upon seeing him. "Here you are finally, Utsusemimaru-chan!"

Utsusemimaru's hands tensed around the hilt of his sword, which he held next to his head, the tip pointing upwards. "Dogold! Stop right now and leave this place at once!"

He knew that would not happen, but such warnings were both customary and a sign of good manners, no matter who one's opponent was.

Dogold let out a cruel laugh. By now, Utsusemimaru didn't think him capable of laughing any other way, however.

"Today, I just might. As long as I get what I want, Utsusemimaru-chan!" He punctuated the last word by raising his sword and starting a fast and merciless attack on Utsusemimaru. "Surrender your body to me, so I can use it however I please!"

With the swiftness and grace that came from countless hours of practice and battle, Utsusemimaru stopped every blow. Dogold would not get his wish. Ever.

At first, Utsusemimaru did not understand Dogold's insistence on the matter. Then, the samurai found out the Rageful Knight was but merely an empty suit of armor, one that would only use whatever body he happened to possess against his comrades. Utsusemimaru would never allow Dogold's wishes become reality. Dogold was, as Utsusemimaru reluctantly accepted, a powerful warrior. To let him take over his own skills would only end in a disaster—and the end of everything Utsusemimaru cherished and loved.

He got some choice words ready to deny Dogold's request as soon as he got the upper hand. Yet, before Utsusemimaru could even the odds in their duel, a Zourima crashed against him, throwing him off balance. Dogold jumped at the chance and reached out to grab Utsusemimaru's arms before he fell down and complete the possession.

But he couldn't even graze the samurai's skin.

"You! Get away from my bodyguard!" lord Daigo yelled as he kicked Dogold's side with such force that he made Dogold stumble. "I saw him first!" he continued without stopping his attack on the Rageful Knight.

"King-dono?" Utsusemimaru gasped as he tried to make sense of the situation.

Meanwhile, Dogold worked on regaining his balance as he parried lord Daigo's sword.

"That's not true!" he exclaimed. "You haven't been here a day! _I_ have known him for longer!"

"But he prefers to stay with me! Don't you, Utsusemimaru?"

"I… do…" Utsusemimaru babbled back. But then, realizing what was at stake, he shook his head and once again he held his sword tightly between his hands and stood firmly on his feet. "I do, King-dono! I'd much rather stay by your side!"

Then, he joined his young lord against their common enemy.

It didn't take long before they fought in perfect harmony. Utsusemimaru stopped Dogold's sword to open a path so Lord Daigo could attack. Dogold was a fierce opponent, but he wasn't used to be the target of such well-coordinated attack. Between the both of them, they soon had the armor covered in dents and with his back against a building. Besides, the samurai and the Kyoryuugers had finished with most if not all the Zourima by then, and had joined Utsusemimaru and lord Daigo to surround Dogold.

The Rageful Knight didn't have the face to show it, but being so easily thwarted frustrated him so obviously that Utsusemimaru couldn't stop a smug smile of his own from forming on his lips.

Lord Daigo raised his sword, placed the flat side on his shoulder, and said, "I don't know who you are or what you want, but you won't get it. Surrender now and you'll be treated with mercy."

Dogold roared in response and pointed at lord Daigo with one of his fingers, the long nail glistening under the sunlight. Everyone else raised their weapons in return, but Dogold understood how outnumbered he was, so he didn't go for a last stand. However, he had something to say.

"Keep your mercy, filthy human! I will be back, and then I'll get what I want!"

With no further warning, Dogold sheathed his weapon and made a hole in the wooden wall to escape. Some of the castle defenders, with lord Daigo and Utsusemimaru at the lead, followed suit while the others tried to block the other exits. But Dogold seemed to have disappeared as soon as he went in. Nevertheless, lord Daigo asked a few guards to conduct a search, just in case. Then, he put a hand on Utsusemimaru's shoulder.

"Please, check on my uncle," he said. "I'll manage things here."

Yes, the image of Moushinosuke had begun to appear in Utsusemimaru's mind. Grateful for the opportunity, he bowed his head before bolting away to Moushinosuke's quarters.

* * *

Dogold stopped in a ravine, unsheathed his sword, and hit the biggest rock in sight as hard as he could as he yelled in rage. He was so full of it that if humans weren't the only source Deboss could take energy from, he himself would have filled the quota at that moment.

He had never felt so humiliated. This had been supposed to be easy. Get in, take Utsusemimaru, get out. But then… that _human_. How did he dare to intervene like that? Granted, Dogold planned to at least mortally wound him to get Utsusemimaru's attention, but he was supposed to catch the young lord by surprise, not the other way around.

How did he dare to be that strong? No human had any business being that strong. Nor to work so perfectly alongside Utsusemimaru.

Dogold roared and hit the rock so hard the blade broke. It flew away in a wide arch until it was caught by the gloved hand of Luckyuro.

Luckyuro stared at the blade and his uninjured fingers in amazement for a moment before he raised it and waved his hand. "Can you believe it! I got it on the first try! It was so cool!"

Dogold growled and tossed the hilt to the ground. "What do you want?"

"I came to see if your plan worked, but I'm… guessing that's… not the case?"

Dogold growled again and gave his back to Luckyuro.

"I'll take that as a confirmation," Luckyuro continued and moved closer to the Rageful Knight, as if he wanted to test the luck he was named after. "Have you thought of your next move? Lord Chaos won't be happy about this."

" _Yes, I know,_ " Dogold hissed, turning around with the intention to grab Luckyuro by the throat, but the little disgrace was faster and his claws missed the mark by centimeters. "I will try it again, but this time I'll ambush him with a monster in a place where he can't get reinforcements." He pointed at Luckyuro with a claw. "And you're coming with me!"

"Fine, fine!" Luckyuro replied as he bounced and played with the broken blade. "I'll make your monster bigger than you can ever imagine!"

 _You'd better, you little brat_ , Dogold thought as he looked up to glare at the clouds. He would have Utsusemimaru's body ready for him to use before the next full moon or he would set fire to everything.

* * *

Lady Yuuzuki Aimi, who decided to call herself Amy whenever she became KyoryuPink, had spent the morning ditching her calligraphy teacher when Torin appeared and told her the Deboss Army had moved to attack Moushinosuke's castle, and that the other Kyoryuugers were already on their way. Mindful of her duty as KyoryuPink—and thankful for the opportunity to leave the family state—, she hurried to the battlefield. Not only had she promised to stop Deboss from returning when she got accepted by Drillcera as her partner, but she also thought of Moushinosuke as a good lord who took good care of her people, and she respected him as such. Besides, there was the matter of Ucchii, who also lived in the castle.

Kyoryuugers were like family to Amy. Or would be, if they only stopped opposing to the idea as fiercely as they opposed their enemies. Ucchii was the only one who stayed after a battle and, despite dramatically turning around whenever she attempted to show him her face, he talked to her both kindly and as an equal. She had grown to see him as an older brother. A very serious older brother. One day, she would manage to make him laugh.

She had also spent the past few days worried about the mysterious young lord her friend spoke to her about, and how Ucchii's new duties would impact KyoryuGold's. However, worst case scenario, she had his back—and knew the others did too, even if they grumped about it.

When she reached the castle, the fight was already ongoing. She got to the best part, though, and got to kick a lot of Zourima and Cambrima. Dogold seemed fixated on Ucchii as usual, but he was defeated not only by Ucchii, but also by the young lord who looked like Moushinosuke as much as everyone said.

Soon, everything was over. There had been a distinctive lack of giant monsters, which meant they didn't have to call the Zyudenryuu, something Amy appreciated. That would have been a bigger mess, with how destructive those fights tended to be. Besides, she had not only seen Ucchii's new charge in action but also seen Ucchii himself smile. Kind of. It had been the smile of a victorious wolf, but a smile nevertheless. Besides, taking into account to whom he directed it, it made sense.

The young lord seemed to be a good and sensible person, too. He had proved himself in battle against Dogold, and even realized Ucchii had to be the one to go and check on Moushinosuke. It would be difficult to find anyone more concerned about the man's well-being.

As soon as Dogold fled, the rest of the Kyoryuugers left as well. Not in pursue of the Deboss Knight, though; they seemed to consider his defeat a good-enough resolution for the day. Amy herself had to go back home to make sure her father hadn't organized an actual search party. Before that, though, she needed to make sure Ucchii was fine.

She jumped to the closest roof and followed him from a distance. They got quickly to their destination, and Ucchii dashed into the rooms, not bothering with closing the door behind him. Amy then jumped down but remained outside, next to the pond, hiding under the bridge, waiting for him to come out. She just hadn't realized someone had followed her too.

"Hello?" she heard behind her, making her jump in response.

"Ah!" she exclaimed, turning around to find the young lord's face looking at her as he hung upside down from the bridge.

"Sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to startle you!" he said as he jumped down next to her, smiling apologetically while scratching the back of his head.

"It's—it's fine!" she replied, feeling a bit silly about the whole situation. She bowed to introduce herself. "Hello! I'm KyoryuPink!"

"Call me King! It's an honor to meet you!" he said, with a wide grin. "I saw you fight back there. You were amazing!"

Oh! So he had a nickname too! And it was a foreign word, although Amy didn't remember the meaning at the moment. Anyway, she found herself liking him even more.

"Thank you, King!" she said, making the shortest of pauses to see if she could get away with not using any honorific. No objections came, so she carried on. "You too! You were so _Brave_ , taking on Dogold like that. He is one of our strongest foes."

King scratched the back of his head once more, smiling a bit awkwardly now. "It wasn't all me, though! Everyone helped."

"Yes, but you even saved Ucchii! I saw everything!"

"Ucchii?" King repeated, tilting his head.

Right then, Amy realized she may have said too much.

…

Ah, well.

* * *

 _So this is what it feels like to be the family of a warrior_ , Moushinosuke mused as he waited for news in the company of the doctor. As time passed, he grew restless, even when the lack of battle noise approaching meant the situation wasn't hopeless. However, he knew first hand that didn't mean everyone would come out in one piece. Too late it dawned on him that he had no idea about Daigo's fighting skills. He had mentioned having taken part in combat once or twice in his letter, but it had been only that: a passing mention. However, he had seemed so confident when he offered to take charge that Moushinosuke just had to allow it. He now knew his nephew's heart was in the right place, and only time would tell about how he would fare as a true warlord.

He had lost track of time when the door slid open again letting Utsusemimaru inside. The young samurai kowtowed at the feet of the futon, out of breath and with all his limbs attached, although his position and the light made it hard to discern any blood on his clothes. His sword was sheathed on his back, which foretold good news.

"My lord," Utsusemimaru began, as he panted. "It is with a joyful heart that I bring you the news of our victory. All the enemies have been dealt with, and the castle and your subjects remain intact."

"My nephew?" Moushinosuke asked, starting to sit up the best he could.

The doctor, realizing this wasn't the best time to argue about it, helped him by supporting his back. Maybe the old man wasn't as terrible as Moushinosuke thought.

Utsusemimaru looked up at his lord, beaming and proud. "He behaved as you would have done, as only the best of lords could. You have nothing to worry about. There are still a few edges to polish, but he will carry on your legacy with honor and dignity. And he came out unscathed from the fray," he added promptly, dissipating all of Moushinosuke's worries entirely.

Moushinosuke grinned and nodded, his heart about to burst with the hope he now knew well-founded. "Thank you, Utsusemimaru. I'm sure you can help him with those edges."

Utsusemimaru lowered his head again. "It will be my honor," he replied, his voice lacking the hint of reticence it had shown despite his best efforts when Moushinosuke first issued his orders.

Then, Moushinosuke relaxed and rested his weight on the doctor's hands, who eased him back the futon. He felt in peace once again, and not only because of the results of the battle led by Daigo. Utsusemimaru seemed more willing to help the young lord now that he had grown to know him. Moushinosuke didn't have the right to expect any less, and he couldn't blame him. If Utsusemimaru's trust was so easily gained, he wouldn't have put his nephew on his hands in the first place.

"You should have seen, my lord!" Utsusemimaru continued. "The way he encouraged the troops! How he fought, like a tornado! And the enemy—"

"Uncle!" Daigo called from the door, and the sight of who was behind him made Moushinosuke startle again. One of the Kyoryuugers was there, wearing her uniform and helmet, which casted a light on the identity of the attackers.

Moushinosuke glanced at Utsusemimaru, who nodded back. Yes, he was about to say as much.

The warlord decided to push the discussion about this matter for later in the day. Right now, some congratulations were in order.

"Daigo!" he said, smiling. "Utsusemimaru was just telling me about your feats!"

"That wasn't only me, though!" Daigo said. "Everyone helped! And Ucchii here seems to be quite popular! KyoryuPink says Dogold has been trying to get a hold of him for a while now."

Moushinosuke directed his eyes to the aforementioned KyoryuPink, who had taken refuge behind Daigo right after his nephew said that nickname. He had known about it, of course, thanks to Torin, but had refrained from using it to avoid embarrassing him. Well, once could say that cat was out of the bag now.

"So Dogold's target was Ucchii all along," he said thoughtfully, which made Utsusemimaru— _Ucchii_ —turn his dismayed eyes to him.

"It had to be!" KyoryuPink said, stepping out from her hiding place. "There was no monster with him. Well, no _other_ monster."

Moushinosuke stroked his chin. "I see… We need to find out what his plan is. I may need to conference with Torin. KyoryuPink, Ucchii, do you think possible to pass along a message to him?"

"Torin appears whenever he believes it necessary, my lord," Ucchii replied, slightly less mortified now that he had a concrete task to concentrate on. "But we could ask the Zyudenryuu to try."

"Please, do so," Moushinosuke said. "Let's hope he gets it."

"Can anyone tell me what's going on?" Daigo said, looking from one to the next and then to the next face in the room. He was all but pouting. So this was one of the edges Ucchii could help him with.

"If you allow me, I will do it," Ucchii said.

"Do it outside," the doctor said. "My lord Moushinosuke needs his rest."

And that was all it took for Ucchii to usher everyone out of the room. Moushinosuke chuckled as the physician closed the door once more. The warlord could feel in his heart that interesting times were coming, and he was left wondering what they would be.


	4. Chapter 4

"It's like I have fallen into the middle a tale!" King exclaimed when Ucchii finished telling him all about the Kyoryuugers and Torin and the Zyudenryuu. KyoryuPink had left earlier to send the message to their mentor as Moushinosuke had asked, so it was just King and Ucchii in the secluded garden behind King's room. Pink had already told her part of the story, and he already knew what dinosaurs were since his father had explained it to him as a child. But taken as a whole this one story was more amazing than King had expected. More than anything he had ever dreamed, and his dreams tended to be quite fantastic.

"Sometimes it does feel like it, King-dono," Ucchii admitted, a fond smile playing on his lips.

Ucchii. Who would have thought someone so serious-looking would have such a nickname? The more he got to know him, the better King thought of him. The more he grew to like him. What a great leader he would be for the people in this land—and it was when he reached this point in his train of thought that King realized he had not mentioned his idea to his uncle.

"Is there something the matter, King-dono?" Ucchii asked, worried.

Accustomed to people being able to read his moods whenever they jumped from extreme to extreme, King replied, "There's something I meant to talk about with my uncle and I forgot."

"How important is it?"

"I guess it can wait until he's rested. But I should tell you too. It's only fair." King placed a hand on Ucchii's shoulder. "I plan to ask him to make you his heir instead of me. You'll be much better at being a lord."

" _What?_ Why?" Ucchii replied after gaping in complete silence for a moment. "King-dono! You have already shown yourself as an extraordinary leader! I can't possibly be better than you!"

"Leading is different from ruling," King replied, removing his hand from Ucchii's shoulder. "You already know everything that's needed, and people respect you."

"People respect you as well!" Ucchii hurried to reply. "Or they will, as soon as they know you. No. As soon as word of the battle you won on their behalf has spread." He looked down at his feet. "Besides, it's not only that I'm far from 'knowing everything,' as you put it. I became a samurai later in life. My blood is that of a peasant. not from a noble family such as yours."

"Blood is blood and mine is as red as yours, Ucchii!" King said, perhaps a bit more forceful than he wanted to. He had never understood that line of thought and it confused him. "People shouldn't think less of themselves because of their origin. One's worth is shown through one's actions, and yours have been those of a good, patient man and a great warrior who loves the land and loves the people, and who is loved by them as well. I saw how they looked at you when you picked me up in town."

The more King spoke, the more the colors on Ucchii's face changed. At first, he was pale, and then, little by little, he turned entirely red. He avoided looking at King's eyes at all moments, however, and it took him a long moment of soft breathing to gather his thoughts enough to answer.

"You flatter me, my lord," he said, stressing the last two words. "Yet, following your own logic, you have proved your worth as well. Even—even if you bleed the same as I do, you have been chosen by your uncle. It is unlikely he will change his mind. And! My duties as KyoryuGold would interfere with any others."

"Hm. You got me there…" Daigo muttered as he scratched his neck. Nevertheless, that didn't mean he had conceded a defeat nor changed his mind. He just needed to find another angle to work from. But he was sure he would think of something in due time. He always did. This decided, he changed to the other topic he wanted to talk about. "Hey! Can you show me how you transform into KyoryuGold?"

"Excuse me?" Ucchii asked. Then he shook his head. "I—My apologies, King-dono. Your request caught me off guard."

"So, can I see?"

"Ah… I'm afraid that is reserved for an emergency."

"Aw," King whined softly. "Well, at least I get to hang out with you until we have one."

"That's… an interesting way to phrase it, King-dono," Ucchii commented after a pause.

"Anyway, for now I should go to see how everything is coming along in the kitchen," King said. "I asked them to prepare special food to celebrate our victory today." He began walking away. "Maybe I can help too! I have some recipes I'm sure everyone will love!"

"King-dono!" Ucchii exclaimed, going after him. "It's not your place to work in the kitchen!"

"But cooking is such hard work, Ucchii! The least I can do is help and earn my share!"

"But you have already earned it! King-dono!"

King kept walking as Ucchii followed, trying to explain how things worked, just as he had done since they first met. But this was something King felt strongly about, so he just kept going. Maybe he could show Ucchii how fun it was to cook and teach him a few tricks of his own. Preparing a meal was, after all, a great activity to bring people together. Even if King thought he had made big progress in his relationship with Ucchii, there was always room to grow closer. Besides, he still intended to make Ucchii laugh, and this would provide a great opportunity to try.

* * *

The cooks allowed both the samurai and young lord to have a corner to themselves after gently implying that they had better not ruin the food already in progress or there would be hell to pay. A deal was made and soon Utsusemimaru found himself holding a kitchen knife and slicing vegetables in quick succession.

"Woah!" lord Daigo exclaimed as he stared at Utsusemimaru in amazement. "You're a real expert!"

Utsusemimaru smiled coyly. "It has been a while since the last time I prepared my food in a kitchen, but it seems my hand still remembers."

Lord Daigo laughed and patted Utsusemimaru's back, leaving a special kind of warmth where his hand made contact. Warmer even than the steam from the stoves. Utsusemimaru felt it creeping up all the way to his cheeks, so he went back to the vegetables, hoping the young lord had not noticed.

"You are a man of many skills, Ucchii!" lord Daigo said. "Keep it up while I prepare the sauce. It won't take long and you'll see how you'll like it!"

With that, lord Daigo turned around to happily work the mortar with the herbs and roots his recipe needed while humming the same song as before. Utsusemimaru glanced at the young lord's elegant profile and swift hands that not so long ago had wielded a sword with the strength of a demon. Yet, now he went about taking care of regular household chores as if nothing bad had happened. As if this was the most normal of days.

Maybe one day he could discover how lord Daigo's mind worked. How he could be so carefree and so responsible at the same time. The young lord had the distinction of being the hardest-to-read person Utsusemimaru had encountered in his life. His open face and bright smile hid so many mysteries.

It was clear now to Utsusemimaru that the young lord did understand what was at a stake, even if he made it seem like he didn't when the fight was not in front of him. Utsusemimaru reminded himself for the hundredth time to remember never to judge by appearances. Lord Daigo was a more complex person than he looked, and Utsusemimaru seemed to find a new facet in him at every turn. The samurai's heart swelled thinking of the great feats this man would accomplish in his life in the name of his uncle and his people—and of how grateful he felt for having been granted the honor to accompany him along the way.

How could lord Daigo ever believe Utsusemimaru would be a better lord? Impossible. Utsusemimaru was not meant to rule; he had found happiness as a retainer. Perhaps he should have taken the chance to question lord Daigo's reasoning further, but he had been caught off guard. Maybe next time the subject was brought up—although he wouldn't be the one to do it; he wanted to believe his own reasoning against it had made a dent in King-dono's… lord Daigo's resolve in the matter. He would not risk making it look like he was interested. Because he wasn't. At all. Even if not so deep down he felt flattered for being thought of so highly.

Belatedly, Utsusemimaru realized that lord Daigo had called him “Ucchii” again. It had sounded so natural coming from Pink's lips, and now it had somehow become natural coming from lord Daigo's too. Even lord Moushinosuke had begun using it! It would have been embarrassing—more embarrassing—if his lord hadn’t used it with the same affection as he used his full name. So in the end Utsusemimaru was not angry about it. He wasn't even upset. It was just something he would have to get used to.

"Ready!" lord Daigo exclaimed, returning with a yellow paste that didn't look nor smell like much, but that did make the samurai jump as he realized how his thoughts had wandered. "Now," he pointed at the rest of the ingredients, "we boil that for a couple of minutes, add this, and we'll be done!"

"I can't way to try it," Utsusemimaru said. He meant it too, curious about this dish the young lord brought from a far-away country. Utsusemimaru had not really taken any opportunity in the past to try foreign cuisine, but if this was good enough for lord Daigo, it would be good enough for him.

* * *

Dricera promised to relay lord Moushinosuke's message to Torin and contact Amy with the answer as soon as possible, so KyoryuPink headed back to town, where she changed to her regular kimono in an alley before going out to the main street. The calligraphy teacher should be gone by then, but if she returned now she would be scolded for her misbehavior in skipping her lesson, so she decided to take a longer route and go to the marketplace first. There she would either find a good excuse or at least buy something exotic to distract everyone with to avoid a scolding.

She spent most of her waking time aware of her terrible behavior, but once in a while she needed a break from all the expectations imposed on her.

"That is not ladylike, Aimi-dono!" were the most common words uttered by her guardian, but few of the rules she had to follow resonated with her. She always felt more at ease and more herself when she could dance to her tune. Like when she fought as a Kyoryuuger. She just wished there was a way she could feel less lonely whenever she didn't take part in a battle. It was not fair for the bystanders.

Then, a small white flower appeared in front of her eyes.

"The beautiful lady must be quite bored if she's wandering around these parts. Perhaps I can be of assistance."

Amy turned her head to find a handsome young man, clearly Japanese but dressed in foreign clothes. A charming smile danced on his face as he offered the flower. She covered her mouth as if to stifle a giggle while she considered whether to accept or reject the present.

The young man was, in a way, a familiar face. They had never spoken, but she knew three things about him: one, he had been adopted by a family of foreign merchants that had found a home in this town; two, he had a reputation with the women in the area; and three, his name was easy to pronounce. She also knew her parents would not approve of them socializing, but he seemed nice, and she could defend herself.

She took the flower.

"Thank you, my lord," she said, since they were in public. "Even though I can’t say I am bored. I'm just looking for something to buy."

He laughed. "You honor me. Sadly, I'm no lord. But my lady Aimi can just call me Ian."

"Then just call me Aimi," she replied brightly. Then, she looked aside, embarrassed by her own bluntness. It always happened. The very moment she felt at ease, she fell back into it. No amount of scolding would ever get her to remember. She wasn't surprised about him knowing her name, though. Her family had some importance, so it was only natural any merchant worth his salt would recognize her. "Ah," she mumbled. "I don’t really stand on ceremony if I can help it.”

"Aimi it is then," Ian said with a smile that was more charming in its sincerity. "If I may, I have some adornments that might interest you." He curtsied to her in the western style, gesturing to the store behind him. It would've looked funny if his movements hadn't been so elegant. "Please, say yes. You don't have to buy anything. It's enough that you grant me the pleasure of your company."

This time, Amy really had to stifle a giggle, and was about to accept his offer when someone else joined the conversation.

"Is this man bothering you, Aimi-san?" said a familiar voice in a familiar grumpy tone.

Both Amy and Ian turned around to meet Rippukan Souji, a serious and proper young man who had been a friend of Amy's since childhood. They had been long promised to each other in marriage by their parents, but neither of them looked forward to the day they would marry, so by common agreement they kept finding excuses to push it further and further away. This time, his task was to find a youkai feather; she got the idea after Torin denied any association.

Amy would have loved to tell Souji about her KyoryuPink identity, but Souji tended to get upset at simple things, and there was no way to know how he would react to that.

"The opposite, actually," she replied, aware of the flower still between her fingers. "I wanted to see the merchandise in his store."

Ian didn't say anything, but bowed his head to confirm Amy's words.

Never abandoning the scowl nor the grumpiness in his voice, Souji glared first at the poor flower, that didn't deserve it—and then at Ian. Who also didn't deserve it. Yet.

Not that subtly, Souji placed himself between Amy and Ian. Just because they did n’t want to get married didn’t mean Souji wasn’t overly protective of her. "I think I am interested too."

However, before Ian could reply or Amy scold Souji for being so rude, people began to yell at the end of the street. There was something happening…

Amy didn't have to squint at the distance for long. A large group of Zourima soon showed up, terrorizing everyone standing in their path. Behind them was Dogold. And behind him, a monster.

Amy covered her mouth to conceal a pout. Twice in the same day had to be a new record. Besides, now she had to find a way to get rid of Souji and Ian so she could protect them. Only one would have been easy, but with two of them… She had to try anyway, so she took a deep breath.

"Go inside the store, you two!" the three of them exclaimed at the same time, and stared at each other in surprise.

"No, you two!" they continued, again in unison.

Oh, joy.

Souji brought his hand to the hilt of his sword. Not as a threatening gesture, but to assert his authority. "Ian-san, take care of lady Aimi."

Ian's mouth thinned, but he seemed to realize that, unlike Souji, he was unarmed. So he nodded and grabbed Amy's wrist to drag her inside. "Good luck!" he said as he crossed the threshold.

Amy didn't have much time to take in the details of the store, but she did notice its cleanliness and how everything was in order. Even in the storage room in the back where Ian asked her to stay.

"Please, wait here," he said before closing the door. "I'll be back soon with news!"

She nodded in silence, faking resignation, since she had noticed an easily-accessible window right above her head in the storeroom. Good. She liked the tune of things falling into place. Just as much as she liked the tune she danced to as she transformed into KyoryuPink.

* * *

 _Twice._ Twice in the same day Dogold had dared to interrupt a nice moment Utsusemimaru was sharing with one of his lords. He was about to taste lord Daigo's new, exotic dish—the results of which smelled more enticing than he had expected—when Torin appeared to tell him about the Rageful Knight attacking the town. Utsusemimaru immediately excused himself, leaving the young lord to explain to Torin about what had happened earlier in the day, and to lead him to see Moushinosuke. Lord Daigo had not been happy about being left behind like that, but regardless of how strong he was as a warrior, this was safer. Besides, Torin promised to take care of him in Utsusemimaru's name.

"I'm glad I didn't come here first, then," Torin had commented, stroking his mustache.

Utsusemimaru was used to his mentor being cryptic, and he didn't have time to stay and ask what he meant by that, so he bowed and left to change and call Pteragordon. Flying would be faster than using a horse.

Once he was in the air, riding on Pteragordon's back, his friend looked down to greet a fellow Zyudenryuu— KyoryuBlue's companion, Stegotchi. Said Kyoryuuger stood on Stegotchi's head and waved at Utsusemimaru and Pteragordon. Utsusemimaru waved back while the realization that KyoryuBlue was coming from the same direction as him crossed his mind. He forgot it soon, however, as they reached the town. After Dogold's declaration, Utsusemimaru knew this was all a ploy to lure him out from the castle. However he would not go into hiding. He would face his enemy and stop him once and for all.

Dogold, his foot soldiers, and an ugly monster, whose body was reminiscent of a golden carp, were right there in the middle of the market along with the other Kyoryuugers. Black, Pink, and Green were fighting valiantly as Blue and Gold joined them, both jumping from their respective Zyudenryuu.

"Why are you playing so hard to get lately, Utsusemimaru-chan?" Dogold asked as soon as Utsusemimaru landed in front of him, confirming the Kyoryuuger's suspicions.

Utsusemimaru immediately drew Zandar Thunder and pointed at Dogold with it. "You won't get what you want, Dogold. Give up and leave the good people of this land alone."

Dogold laughed as he launched his attack, his sword clashing loudly against KyoryuGold's. "No! You give up!" he said as he pressed all his weight on his weapon, so close now to Utsusemimaru that if Dogold had been human, Utsusemimaru would have smelled his breath. "You will be mine!"

Utsusemimaru pushed Dogold away with all his might. "Never!"

Dogold stumbled backwards a few paces. The Kyoryuuger garments helped channel the spirit of dinosaurs, and thus they provided the wearer with powers beyond the limits of normal human strength and ability. This was already a fairer fight than the one in the castle. Utsusemimaru should be able to defeat Dogold this time without lord Daigo's help, even if it had been wonderful to fight alongside him.

Utsusemimaru readied his sword for the next attack, which he knew would come as soon as Dogold recovered his balance. Yet, before that, the Rageful Knight made a sign with his claws to the side of the street. Now panicking about the possibility of a trap he didn't foresee, Utsusemimaru turned to see Luckyuro scurrying to the side of a building.

"Over there!" the samurai called, trying to alert the other Kyoryuugers, but it was too late.

From behind that same building, a second monster, dark green and with antlers like a beetle, grew as big as a castle, and then some.

That was… Frankly, that was against all the unspoken rules of the battles between the Kyoryuugers and the Deboss Army. It showed how little one could trust an evil enemy bent on destroying all life on Earth.

Taking advantage of the confusion, Luckyuro sneaked back to the first monster and watered it as well. "Now you, now you," he said, and by the time either Utsusemimaru or the others could react to that, it was too late. Now, with two giant monsters to fight, all the Kyoryuugers needed to reach their Zyudenryuu at once and work together harder than they ever had. Utsusemimaru briefly wondered if they would be up to the challenge, but then he scolded himself. It was not the best moment to doubt his fellow warriors.

Utsusemimaru jumped up in the air to get to Pteragordon, but Dogold intercepted him with fierce and quick attacks. He would not let him pass to join the others, and the monsters would keep the Kyoryuugers occupied.

So this was Dogold's plan all along, to isolate him from any and all back up.

The samurai pursed his lips. This changed things, but not that much. He remained confident in his skills to defeat Dogold on his own. He needed to focus on his present battle and ignore everything else around and above them.

Yes, as a warrior who had survived countless battlefields, he could do it.

However, the hardest part would be to ignore the cries of those terrorized by the Zourima, but if he tried to stop them, then he would provide Dogold with the opening he needed to take over his body, and then no one would be safe. It broke his heart to neglect that part of his duty, but Dogold had to be defeated first. So he raised his sword to invoke thunder and launched himself forward, aiming directly for the heart of his enemy.

* * *

"Ah! You must be Torin!" King exclaimed, beaming, as the whirl of feathers and light settled down, revealing a tall humanoid creature who resembled a bird and matched the description he had been given. Despite his appearance, the newcomer didn't feel like a threat. Even the cooks reacted as if instead of a magical creature materializing in the middle of the kitchen, a high-ranking-yet-human official had walked in. He was a familiar sight, which only confirmed his identity.

"Indeed I am, young Daigo," Torin replied, snapping his fingers once before he turned to Ucchii. "Utsusemimaru!" he exclaimed. "Dogold is attacking the town. KyoryuGold is needed on the battlefield!"

Ucchii's eyes widened before he grew serious and bowed to both Torin and King. "I'm on my way! King-dono, please escort Torin to see your uncle."

He turned to Torin and spared a glance at King. Before he could say anything, his mentor spoke.

"I know. Don't worry. Go, now!" Torin shook his head and stroked his mustache. "I'm glad I didn't come here first, then," he murmured.

Ucchii bowed once more and sprinted away from the kitchen, ready to face his enemy once more, leaving King full of conflicted feelings. On the one hand, he understood the importance of Moushinosuke's talk with Torin. On the other, he didn't want to miss seeing Ucchii fight as a Kyoryuuger. He was impressive as a normal human, so with the powers granted by the spirits of the dinosaurs, he could only be magnificent.

Torin put a hand on King's shoulder. "Shall we go?"

King sighed, took a deep breath, and nodded. They started off at once. "How did you know my name?" he asked.

"I know a few things about the comings and goings in this castle," Torin replied. "Is the reason why I should be escorted to see Moushinosuke related to this morning’s attack?"

"Yes," King replied, folding his arms. "I guess you didn't get KyoryuPink's message, then. My uncle said he wanted to talk to you about this Dogold guy wanting to hijack Ucchii's body."

Torin's bird head tilted and his eyes shone with brief amusement at the mention of the nickname. It didn't last, though, since there were more important matters at hand. "Dogold has coveted Utsusemimaru's body for a long time now. If he were ever to possess the body of a powerful warrior, that strength would add to his, making him an even more formidable enemy. But he had never tried this hard to get it. He must be desperate." He stroked his mustache again. "This can only mean—"

"—That the attack just now is to lure Ucchii out!" King finished, turning around with one jump. "I must go help him!"

Yet, before he could dash away toward the stables to grab Yuuki and gallop into town, Torin grabbed him by the shoulder again—this time much more firmly.

"Ah. I'm afraid you cannot do that. I promised Utsusemimaru I'd look after you while he was gone."

"When did you do that?" King asked, trying to move, but unable to do so. Torin turned out to be incredibly strong.

"Right before he left," Torin replied and resumed his way to Moushinosuke's quarters, dragging King as if he weighed nothing.

Regardless, the young man thrashed about with all his limbs and did his best to free himself. "But he needs help!" he exclaimed.

"He is not alone," Torin replied. "The other Kyoryuugers will help him. They are a fighting squad after all, there to cover each other's backs."

"Are they really?" King asked, which made Torin hesitate—even if didn't let go of him just yet. King continued, "They weren't doing any teamwork when I saw them fight."

"So that's the impression they give," Torin said, almost to himself. He sounded sad.

"It was more than just an impression."

Torin then turned his head and stared right at King's eyes for a long, pensive moment, as if evaluating his very soul. King held Torin's gaze without a problem, finding wisdom and hope in the bird-man’s eyes.

After a moment, Torin loosened his grip. "Let's try something," he said, again mostly to himself. "I'll go see Moushinosuke later." As he spoke, a bright beam of light enveloped them both for a second. When it went away, they were in the middle of the town, where chaos reigned.

Ucchii, easy to distinguish thank to his golden attire, fought Dogold while two giant monsters advanced on the other Kyoryuugers and Zyudenryuu to keep them busy. All without counting the Zoruimas wreaking havoc in the market, looking for someone they could hurt just as they had done in the castle fight.

Torin presented King with a weapon. "Go," he said.

Immediately, King grabbed it and charged.

His first thought was to help Ucchii. However, he realized that the samurai was holding up much better than he had back in the castle that morning, and that it was the common people who needed help the most. So he turned around and fought the Zourimas, to give those who were still outside a chance to seek refuge in a house or a store. He fought with all his heart and might, once again feeling as if he had landed in the middle of a fantastic tale. Behind him, a battle of giants took place, the monsters battling the Zyudenryuu, which were as magnificent as he had hoped, and who managed to drive their battle into the harbor.

King cleared the street soon enough. Having fought those creatures before, King knew what to expect, and Torin's weapon was precise and powerful. Once he had accomplished his task, as the people came out from their precarious hiding places, he gained a few questioning looks as they also made double takes in his direction.

The whispers began after a few seconds. "That's the young lord," they said. "He's lord Moushinosuke's nephew."

"Yes!" he replied. "I'm Kiryuu Daigo and Moushinosuke is my uncle! But you can call me just King! Now go find some refuge and leave the rest to us!"

The people nodded and hurried to do as told, leaving King with a sense of satisfaction that unfortunately didn't last long.

"So that's how it is," Dogold’s voice growled not so far away from him. "Your interferences keep making me so angry!" Even though he was nothing but a suit of armor, he somehow managed to look disheveled after his fight. He sported several cracks in his right shoulder and side and could barely stand up straight. A little further away, Ucchii rested on his sword, panting.

"King-dono?" Ucchii managed to say.

King smiled and rested his weapon on his shoulder. "Don't worry! I'm fine!" he said. "I couldn't stay idle while you risked your lives out here, so I forced Torin to bring me here to help!"

"Did you, really?" Dogold said. Then, finding new strength coming from some mysterious place, the Rageful Knight raised his sword and pointed it at King. "Whatever. This calls for a change of plans!" he exclaimed as he now charged against the young man. "Time to hit Utsusemimaru where it hurts!"

"King-dono!" Ucchii called desperately, as King got ready to receive the armor and its ugly face, which grew closer and closer with murderous intent.

However, before Dogold could reach him, King was hit by a hurricane of feathers and the Golden Land disappeared from his sight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to update this sooner, but then I got sick and got a lot of work. Anyway, here it is now! =D 
> 
> Cheers and thank you for reading all the way through here!


	5. Chapter 5

"So you didn't only fail, but you also let them recruit a new Kyouryuuger?" Candelira exclaimed as Dogold finished his report.

Yes, that was precisely what he had said, but her cheerful tone added insult to injury. Injuries. The armor was so cracked the Cambrima inside became visible. When had dear Utsusemimaru become so strong? It helped to remind himself that he and the gold ranger had engaged twice that same day: the first time, Utsusemimaru had cheated and the second, he had worn his Kyoryuuger suit. Yet, Dogold felt angrier than ever. But then again, when did he not?

"Even the monsters survived this time," Luckyuro said, arms folded and shaking his head, faking seriousness. "They're in the back right now, training to become stronger and ready for their next battle!" He finished the sentence by punching the air with energy.

"Aha! Their dedication is so moving! It makes me want to cry!" Agaillon added.

"You should work just as hard, Luckyuro," Candelira said.

"I—ah, I'm a little busy with other important things," Luckyuro hurried to reply, ready to bolt away or hide behind the nearest column in case anyone pressed the matter.

Dogold growled and did his best to ignore the other Knights. How he resented them all. They did not understand his needs and they never would. They had their own bodies and, unlike him, did not depend on an inferior being just so they could stand upright. He thought of a Candelira with no legs and no feet, unable to dance all those dances she loved. A Luckyuro without a mouth, unable to taste his sweets. An Aigallon without eyes to cry from. Under those circumstances, they would all beg for a proper body or maybe even to have their miserable existences terminated.

Yes, Dogold had called for a retreat before the monsters had even been defeated, the first time in the recorded history of the Deboss Army. Maybe he should have continued the fight after Torin took the young lord away. Maybe he should have overcome the shame of having his face broken in two pieces when he hit the ground as his target vanished. Utsusemimaru had been confused and upset and—best of all—distracted when his charge disappeared. However, Dogold's wounds had weakened him. The chances of Utsusemimaru winning the fight against the possession were high, and Dogold's current Cambrima would have collapsed at any moment. It still could.

Dogold was so consumed by rage it took him a moment to realize Chaos had cast a healing spell on him.

"You had your chance, Dogold," the High Priest said once the cracks in the golden armor had mended. "And you did not succeed. The pursuit for the body you want will no longer be your priority."

Dogold nodded. "Yes, sir." He forced himself to add the second word. He had escaped punishment this time, but it angered him to have wasted his opportunity.

"I wonder if the birth of this new Kyoryuuger is what the shift of this planet's energies predicted," Chaos continued as if nothing of importance had happened. The rest of the Knights followed his cue.

"But it's just one Kyoryuuger," Luckyuro said. "We already have five of those."

"Nevertheless, it would be unwise to underestimate him," Chaos said. "If he is to be judged by the Zyudenryuu I have in mind, he will be an enemy of note. Torin would not have taken the risk otherwise. We must be prepared for his arrival." He paused to think for a moment. Or maybe for effect. It was hard to tell. "Aigallon, it's your turn now. Have a plan of attack ready by the time the new Kyoryuuger returns."

"Yes, lord Chaos!" Aigallon replied, on the edge of tears. "I will not let you down."

Chaos nodded, an implied 'You'd better,' in the movement. It doubled as a sign to dismiss them.

Dogold folded his arms and left. He would take the time to lick the metaphorical wounds that still lingered in his mood—and to find a new Cambrima. Chaos's healing spell had not been intended for the creature inside him. Why would it? There were more than enough of them, and Dogold could get as many as he wanted. But he did not want _them_. He wanted Utsusemimaru.

Even if Chaos said his chase would no longer be his first priority, there was enough leeway in that order that if he happened to get a hold of the samurai during a battle, he could keep him. Very well, he would make sure to offer back up to Aigallon when the time came.

However, no one expected it to take as long as it did.

* * *

"My lord Moushinosuke appointed me as lord Daigo's bodyguard!" Ucchii said, kowtowing at the entrance of Moushinosuke's room and at Torin's feet, in the perfect spot for Moushinosuke to see the entire scene from his futon. The obvious desperation in the young samurai's voice was heartbreaking. "Torin, I beg you: take me to him!"

"Daigo must suffer Gabutyra's judgment on his own, just like you and your fellow Kyoryuugers did with your respective Zyudenryuu partners," Torin replied in a gentle, yet definitive voice.

However, Ucchii did not move. He remained with his forehead pressed against the floor and his pride nowhere to be seen. There he stayed, motionless like a statue for a long, long moment as the air hung heavily around him.

Moushinosuke knew Torin well enough to know that if he had had lips instead of a beak, he would have grimaced. For a moment the warlord felt tempted to interfere but, before he could decide on what to say, Torin got a hold of the door and began to slide it closed.

"I need to speak with Moushinosuke," Torin said. "I'll get back to you when I'm done." Then he knelt down next to his friend's futon.

Moushinosuke, who had indeed been waiting for his turn to have a strong word with the bird man ever since he heard the news, folded his arms over his chest and refused to look at him.

"I should forbid you entrance to my house," he said in a firm voice. "Daigo's welcome party hasn't even been celebrated and you already took him away!"

"Your nephew is in good health," Torin replied. "Gabutyra might be stubborn, but he will not allow any true harm to befall him. Besides, young Daigo is determined to go through the trial, just as I hoped he would be. He is strong and truly Brave. He will succeed, and become a worthy Kyoryuuger. There is no need to worry about him." He paused to stroke his mustache. "I am, however, worried about Ucchii."

Moushinosuke deflated at those words. Whatever anger he had felt faded away at the praise Daigo got from Torin. He would never have spoken like that about anyone who did not deserve it, not even to appease an upset relative. Moushinosuke knew about the power bestowed on the Kyoryuugers by the spirits of the dinosaurs and how noble and grand their cause was. Furthermore, according to the news he had received from the battlefield, the townspeople had already begun to think highly of Daigo. To love him. Just like the people in the castle.

But Ucchii… Poor Ucchii was a different matter. He believed he was a big failure.

Through the door, both Moushinosuke and Torin looked at Ucchii's silhouette finally changing positions to sit down next to the door. At least he was no longer kowtowing.

"Why don't you take him to oversee Daigo's trial?" the warlord asked. "He doesn't have to do anything but watch, and I did appoint him as my nephew's bodyguard."

"I don't trust him." Torin immediately cleared his throat after his response. "I mean, I trust Ucchii with my life, and the fate of both the Golden Land and the whole of the planet Earth, but this… This is different. Ucchii might be tempted to yell a word of two of advice or warning, and Gabutyra is very particular about these things. There are many reasons why no one has ever been able to defeat him."

Moushinosuke sighed. "Yes. Ucchii does have a tendency to fret. So the only thing we can do is wait," he added after a brief pause.

Torin nodded. "Regardless of the result, I will bring young Daigo back to you unharmed."

Moushinosuke nodded back in turn and the two of them fell into a comfortable silence, as they always did. However, it was short lived.

"Am I still allowed in your house, then?" Torin asked.

"Yes, Torin. You are."

"Thank you."

"I must say I'm glad you’ve begun using Ucchii's nickname too."

Torin snickered. "It suits him. Besides, it's the kind of thing that brings people together. I haven't had the chance to use it to his face, though, but I will. Perhaps it may soften the blow when I tell him you agreed that he should wait here."

Moushinosuke laughed. "Sneaky as always, I see."

The door opened again. It was the doctor, who had come over to tend Moushinosuke's bandages.

"I'll take this as my cue to leave," Torin said, standing up. "Before I go, there is something else you haven't yet considered, old friend."

"What would that be?"

"When Daigo returns for his welcome party, you might be healthy enough to assist!"

Moushinosuke laughed once more, this time harder. It made him happier to realize now it did not hurt as much.

The doctor only shook his head and bowed as Torin passed next to him.

The friends exchanged a final nod before Torin left to face the stubborn samurai who had remained next to the door.

* * *

This was the third worst day in Utsusemimaru's life—the first being the day his parents died and the second, when Moushinosuke had nearly died. He had only been around lord Daigo for two days, and he had already grown familiar with his energy and good nature. But now his charge had gone to an island who knew where. Without him, Utsusemimaru felt alone and without purpose. He felt… _abandoned_. And, frankly, guilty for not having been able to follow him. For failing in his one duty.

It had taken him too long to react when Dogold had charged against lord Daigo. He should have dashed ahead to stop the Rageful Knight. If Torin had not taken lord Daigo away, he could have—

_He could have been killed._

Far from the competent bodyguard he was supposed to be—that Moushinosuke expected him to be—, Utsusemimaru had proved to be useless.

Utsusemimaru gritted his teeth and held his sword so tight his knuckles lost their color. On top of everything, not only had Torin announced lord Daigo's resolution of staying on Gabutyra's island until the Zyudenryuu's defeat, but also Moushinosuke's blessing that he should face the trial alone.

Part of Utsusemimaru understood and admired the reasoning behind wanting to become a Kyoryuuger. The need to help, to serve, and to protect others. To stop evil from hurting the world in any way possible. All of those were worthy and noble reasons, and Utsusemimaru knew in his heart that someone like lord Daigo could only feel the same way.

However, the rest of him could not get rid of the feeling the lord Daigo felt forced to become stronger to protect himself since his guardian was useless. This was the root of Utsusemimaru's urgency to speak to him, to ask him for forgiveness—that, and the need to see that bright smile and those kind and mischievous eyes again…

To add insult to injury, once more Utsusemimaru had been denied the grace of a rainy day to match his gloomy mood, and the well thought-out beauty of the garden behind lord Daigo's rooms made everything worse. Perhaps he should leave the castle and find some dark cave to seclude himself in for a while.

"Man, you are so hard to find," he heard suddenly in a concerned and vaguely familiar voice.

Utsusemimaru looked up to find KyoryuBlue looking at him from the edge of the roof above him. He hurried to stand up as Blue jumped down with a somersault.

"KyoryuBlue! Is there something wrong?" Utsusemimaru asked. "Is the town under attack again?" Even as he spoke, he felt ashamed by how easily he welcomed the idea of any sort of distraction.

But KyoryuBlue shook his head with energy as he raised his hand. "No, no! I just came to see how you were doing! I was worried after what happened with Torin and the young lord."

Utsusemimaru felt his spirits plummet. Nevertheless, he tried to present a secure front. "I appreciate your concern, but Torin said everything would be fine. Therefore, I will be fine as well."

Blue sighed loudly. "If Torin said so, then I don't doubt it. But I must tell you, you don't look the part."

So much for that secure front, then.

Blue then offered Utsusemimaru a small box. "Here! I picked these up on the way. Thought they might cheer you up."

Utsusemimaru's heart jumped at the unexpected gesture, but he still hesitated to take it.

Blue's next move was to push the box into his hands. "Come on! They can't be that bad!"

"My apologies!" Utsusemimaru hurried to say as he took it. "I dare to be this rude after you came all this way just for me."

"It wasn't that much of a detour, really."

As Blue spoke, Utsusemimaru opened the box to discover sweets inside. Such a thoughtful effort to make on his behalf, even if the samurai's sweet tooth was not much of a secret. Utsusemimaru felt like he could cry, regardless of how unbecoming such behavior was in a grown man.

"I—" he began, pushing his words around the knot in his throat and failing. "Thank you."

"You're welcome! They help my niece to feel better, so I thought they would be worth a try. Say," Blue added after a brief pause, "do you want to talk about what troubles you?"

Utsusemimaru stopped with one of the sweets mid-way to his mouth. To talk about this particular problem might make him look disloyal to his masters, which would be the opposite of the truth. So he shook his head. "I'm just worried about something I should not, that's all," he replied.

Despite the helmet hiding his expression, Utsusemimaru could tell that Blue remained unconvinced. But any comment he may had had he kept to himself. Instead, he asked, "The welcome feast is not canceled, right?"

"No. It just has been postponed."

"Good, then I'm not out of work. I just need to go back to it." Before Utsusemimaru could ask what he meant, Blue jumped up to the roof again. "Come by to help if you want!" he exclaimed and then he disappeared from sight.

Left to ponder his comrade's strange behavior, Utsusemimaru finally took the first bite out of the sweet. As he did, he figured everything out.

* * *

"Why do you want to go back there, Aimi-san?" Souji asked, even as he let her drag him all the way to Ian's store.

"I need a present to cheer up a friend," Amy explained. "A samurai friend. I was hoping you'd help me choose it. Besides, I want to thank Ian-san for taking care of me that day."

Souji sighed but nodded. "Fine, I can do that. Just don't ask me to deliver it."

"Don't worry. I can take care of it myself!" Especially since she planned to do it as KyoryuPink, the one Ucchii would accept it from.

The Day of the Two Battles, as she called it, ended on a bittersweet note. Once Torin and King disappeared, Dogold fell flat on his face, which led him to decide he had had enough humiliations for the day. As soon as he got up, he ordered a retreat. However, Ucchii spent the next minute calling for the young lord, like a kitten that had lost his mother. Maybe that was why the others took pity on him.

"He'll be fine. Torin was the one who took him away," Black had said, arms folded and sounding annoyed. But then again, he always sounded like that. "Maybe back to the castle."

"Yes, it makes sense," Green had added. "Dogold attacked him after all."

Ucchii stopped pacing. "Yes," he had replied. "Yes, it does. I will look for him there. Thank you all for your effort today," he said, bowing his head. Then, he asked Pteragordon to fly him back to the castle, and left.

"How is he always so polite?" Blue had asked once Ucchii had gone. "Even when he's so worried."

"Beats me," Black replied, shrugging.

Green scoffed. "Of course. Someone as rude as you would never understand."

"He's just nice," Pink had said. "We're a team. We all should be."

"Pass," Black said, which everyone took as a cue to end the discussion and disband.

Amy had to, anyway, so she could return to the storage room before Ian and Souji did. Luck did not disappoint and she even had enough time to sit down and look like she had been waiting for a long time when the door opened.

Later, though, Dricera let her know that Torin took King not to the castle, but to face one of the strongest Zyudenryuu out there. One that had never been defeated. This should have been concerning, but Amy had seen King in action, being a strong and capable warrior. She did not doubt he could do it. He would return a worthy Kyoryuuger. On the other hand, though, Ucchii had been left without his charge and, knowing him, without a sense of direction. He had worked so hard to prepare the welcome feast only to postpone it in the last moment for who knew how long. Amy wanted to check on him, but didn't want to do it empty-handed.

"Here we are," Souji announced as they walked down the street. "I'm glad the store remained in one piece after the attack."

"Most everything did," Amy said as they approached the place, "thanks to the Kyoryuugers."

Souji nodded and made an affirmative noise, but nothing more, which was frustrating. Amy would have loved to know whether Souji had an opinion about the Kyoryuugers beyond 'Sometimes their existence is useful.' It would make it much easier to decide whether she should tell him about her secret identity or not.

Souji had been out on the streets last time, but she had been unable to locate him in the chaos of the battle. Knowing him, he must have spent that time guiding people out of danger, including himself. He did not have any visible scratches when he went to pick her up from the store, even if he was out of breath. That was good. It was her job—her chosen duty—to place herself in the way of danger, not his. Yet, because he was her dear friend, she would have wanted him to know. She sighed inwardly. She would keep thinking about it later.

Now, just like last time, Ian waited at the entrance to his store. Unlike last time, however, he did not offer a small, white flower to Amy—he did it to both Amy and Souji, to the bemusement of the later. Before Souji could say anything, though, Amy covered her smile with one hand and took both flowers with the other—and then she put placed the gifts in Souji's hair, just behind his ear.

"Welcome back," Ian said, pretending not to notice the twitch in Souji's eyebrow. The best way to go about it, really. "I was starting to wonder if I would ever see you again, dear Aimi, lord Souji."

Souji growled under his breath as he removed the flowers, unable to believe the man's boldness. Thus, Amy decided to follow Ian's example and ignore him, carrying on with explaining her request.

"A present for a man?" Ian said, raising an eyebrow. "Does that mean lord Souji and I have a new rival?"

 _What an inappropriate and yet kind of charming thing to say!_ Amy thought as she hurried to deny anything of the sort while Souji huffed behind her.

So this was why Ian had a reputation…

Regardless, he did his best to help them look for the present Amy wanted. They looked all over the store, discovering many wonders from across the sea. Even Souji could not hide he was impressed, to Ian's smug satisfaction. It took some time, but in the end, she decided on a puppet shaped as an eagle that, with some work, could be made to look like Pteragordon. Yes, this would do nicely, and Ucchii would love it. After thanking Ian, Amy paid and Souji escorted her back home, leaving soon after for some sword practice.

As soon as she was alone, she was taken to a private audience with her mother.

"You have missed too many classes this month, Aimi," she was told. "This is unacceptable. From now own, you are forbidden from leaving the house until your behavior improves."

Fine. There were windows, and Amy could jump the wall with no problem.

But then, her mother continued, "Gentle will remain with you at all times, and you will heed his advice."

Amy yelped. Gentle was the most loyal of her father's servants, determined and impossible to bribe, and her mother had just given him control over her. Everyone in the house knew about his legendary skills, which made them suspect he had been some kind of spy before entering into the domestic service of lord Yuuzuki. Ditching him would be impossible unless Amy invoked the spirits of the dinosaurs to help her—and that if she ever found a moment to change.

Starting the next day, Gentle made sure to keep Amy busy, ensuring that she attended all of her classes and stayed there. He remained kneeling in the back of the room, where he could see her and she could feel his gaze drilling into the back of her head. Utterly bored, she spent half the time thinking about how she could get away from him, but to no avail. He knew the house better than she did, and was capable of anticipating every one of her movements and objections.

One good thing came from all of this, though: her pensive expression earned her glowing praise from her tutors, since it seemed like she was finally paying attention to them. Only Gentle seemed skeptical, and quizzed her later, after the teachers had retired for the night.

"I'm tired," Amy said after failing the third question in a row. "It's been a long day!"

"Not long enough, if you ever intend to play with that doll of yours again, Aimi-dono."

The gift for Ucchii. Gentle would pry it away from her cold, dead hands. She would fight him for it. But since her usual way of getting her way with the servants would not work on Gentle, she decided to use the weapons he had placed at her disposal instead.

"Ah! That's nothing, really. Just a small project that relaxes me before I go to sleep."

Gentle raised both eyebrows, but then he said, "Very well. I will allow it. As long as you keep up with your lessons, and you can answer my questions at the end of every day."

Thus, the battlefield had been chosen. Amy accepted the issued challenge by meekly voicing her thanks and went back to her room to work with the stuffed eagle that would become Pteragordon.

All in all, however, even with Amy's best intentions, her work took the better part of a month. Fortunately, King – and the chance to sneak off to see Ucchii that his welcome party would provide – had yet to return by then.

Although, with the distress this should be causing his friends, perhaps it was not fortunate at all.

* * *

Despite his heartbreak and perceived humiliation, Utsusemimaru remained in charge of the young lord's welcome feast, which had only been postponed. Not for long, he thought, and the idea cheered him up. No Kyoryuuger had ever taken more than a few days to prove their worth to their Zyudenryuu partner. Lord Daigo would surely manage sooner than anyone else.

Then, the days began to pass, one after another and another and another… All without news from Gabutyra's Island, making Utsusemimaru grow more and more impatient and more and more worried. He often found himself at the entrance of the castle looking off into the distance, longing for the sight of lord Daigo's contagious smile and sparking eyes. For his open way of addressing everyone. For the warmth of his hand when it had touched the samurai's shoulder or when their backs had pressed together as they fought against Dogold.

For Utsusemimaru, physical contact usually came in the form of rough half hugs from his fellow samurai, where they would grab him by the shoulders and shake him with mirth whenever there was anything to celebrate. Lord Daigo seemed to think any moment in life was worthy of celebration, and was therefore more liberal with his demonstrations of affection. Even his voice felt like it would be a comforting-yet-exciting welcome home after a long day on the battlefield.

Yes, Utsusemimaru often found himself missing the man dearly. Almost as if…

Almost as if…

He shook his head. He wouldn't voice it, even to himself. One pain of this kind was enough. He didn't need two. He would just serve the young lord as he had served his uncle before, and that would be it.

His resolution seemed easy to follow with lord Daigo so far away. Utsusemimaru both feared and wished for his return. As time moved forward, the more torn the samurai felt. Yet, since he already knew the ending to this tale, he would have preferred to avoid the subject for as long as possible. But with lord Moushinosuke affected the way he was by the ordeal, it became impossible.

"Torin said he would keep us informed if anything extraordinary were to happen," Utsusemimaru said to lord Moushinosuke, who was at last allowed to take the sun in the garden outside his quarters.

"Torin has always honored his word," Moushinosuke replied, more sternly than usual. His frown grew deeper each day, along with his concern.

This, in turn, added to the weight in Utsusemimaru's heart, so he tried to comfort his lord. "Lord Daigo held his ground against Dogold himself, my lord. He is strong, skillful and worthy. Surely Gabutyra will think the same."

"Torin wouldn't have taken Daigo if he didn't believe in him," Moushinosuke continued with a sigh. "Do not dismiss the workers just yet, Utsusemimaru. Find them something else to do if they think they can't do anything else in the feast hall."

"They already fixed the damage caused by our fight with Dogold within the castle grounds," Utsusemimaru replied. "And now I have them fixing the damages in town."

"With my money?"

Utsusemimaru gaped; that was a detail he had not considered.

Moushinosuke laughed. "I was just teasing you. As their lord, it is my duty to protect them. Besides, if this is done in Daigo's name, they will accept him as their future lord more easily."

"They already love your nephew, my lord. His actions spoke so loudly that everyone in your land could hear them."

Moushinosuke closed his eyes and sighed. "Good. Now, let us hope he returns soon so they can keep talking."

"Yes, my lord," Utsusemimaru repeated. He knew Moushinosuke's worries had not been assuaged completely, and neither had his own. But Moushinosuke was right: they could only wait. Wait and keep themselves busy. Something the people hired to prepare the feast already did. People Utsusemimaru had not gone to supervise ever since KyoryuBlue gave him those sweets.

To scorn the idea that one of the Kyoryuugers belonged to a lower class would make Utsusemimaru a hypocrite, given his own origins. Furthermore, KyoryuBlue was a strong warrior. The strongest of them all, actually. A good share of their victories had only been possible because of him. And he had trusted Utsusemimaru with information as sensitive as his identity when he had a sister and a young niece to think about. But instead of opening up a closer friendship between them, such knowledge and a sense of responsibility impeded Utsusemimaru from approaching the man in a friendly manner. It was not his style, and too much was at stake should someone find it suspicious. No. He had better kept his distance, and leave his own problems buried.

"Ucchii, are you well?" Moushinosuke asked. "You're pouting more than usual."

Utsusemimaru felt the familiar warmth of a flush creeping on his cheeks. "Yes—yes, my lord. I'm—" _just as worried about your nephew as you are, and worried about the Kyoryuugers as a team_ , he stopped himself from saying. While true, it did not encompass the entirety of the problem. After a moment, however, Utsusemimaru found himself confiding everything but Blue's identity to his lord.

"I thought you wanted the Kyoryuugers to become closer, a real fighting unit," Moushinosuke said once Utsusemimaru finished.

"I did." He shook his head. "I do, and this development causes me great pain. I wish to speak with familiarity to my comrades, but innocents could suffer from it. All of them have chosen to keep their identities a secret for a reason, and now I think I understand why."

Except for Pink, who had tried several times to reveal her identity to him. But that was a different matter altogether. The idea of freezing out of terror in front of her upon seeing her face terrified him. Curse his awful, awful weakness.

"Do not worry, Ucchii. This problem will solve itself soon."

"My lord?"

Moushinosuke sported the mischievous grin that raised alarm in everyone who knew him.

Utsusemimaru shivered.

"I can feel it in my bones," was all the explanation Moushinosuke gave. Then, he sighed. "Please, help me back to my room. I believe we have used up all the time allotted by the good doctor."

Utsusemimaru bowed and hurried to obey. Once Moushinosuke was safe and sound on his futon, he did not dare to bring up the subject again and ask further about what his lord's bones might be feeling. He could only hope they spoke true—just as strongly as he hoped all his inappropriate feelings would leave him be.


	6. Chapter 6

"It's been a month already!" Dogold roared as he threw one Zourima against a group of them a few meters away. Unable to get out of the way in time, they all hit the ground upon impact.

Candelira bounced and clapped. "Wow! So impressive!"

"I wonder if we could turn this into a game," Luckyuuro mused, and the Zourima closest to him inched away. "Ah! Ah! It's fine!" he told them. "I'm not sure I'm strong enough to lift you like that anyway!"

However, the Zourima decided to play it safe and pretended to have been given an assignment somewhere else.

"I understand you, Dogold," Aigallon said. "My plan is ready, but all this stalling and lack of consideration from the young lord makes me want to cry!"

"I should give you a good reason to cry about!" Dogold growled between his fangs, his closed fists trembling and his ire barely contained.

"Stop! Stop!" Candelira said, placing herself between Dogold and Aigallon, who was already crying. "We’re all waiting the same. There's no reason to get angry. Or sad." She paused thoughtfully. "Maybe bored, but even that can't be helped."

"We can play games!" Luckyuro offered. "I learned some new ones last time I went spying to town."

Dogold roared again. "You were not supposed to spy on the children, you—!"

"But there was nothing new going on in the castle!" Luckyuro replied as he hid behind Candelira.

Dogold roared again, now to the heavens. If he were capable of throwing fire from his mouth, this would have been the perfect moment to discover it. Unfortunately, nothing happened.

"Why don't we attack?" Candelira said. "Maybe we can lure him out."

"We need lord Chaos' permission," Aigallon said. "Since it goes against his instructions."

"But it _has_ been a month," Luckyuro commented. "If we bring that up…"

"He might just agree!" Candelira finished.

* * *

Amy found Gentle impossibly smug. Like a cat that derived pleasure from stalking its prey, he followed her around from the perfect distance, respecting her privacy and at the same time letting her know her freedom was an illusion. Even now in the garden, as she spoke with Souji, Gentle remained in the back, drinking tea as if life were perfect and he did not have a care in the world. Unable to hear them but, at the same time, in total control of the circumstances.

To make things worse, during the past weeks he had questioned her about not having married Souji already.

"I really want that youkai feather," she had replied, as she always did.

But Gentle remained skeptical and lectured her in length about duty and honor. Amy refused to move an inch and Gentle did not walk away happy from that conversation. Probably. His lack of facial expressions made it hard to tell.

"He may want to talk to you," Amy said after explaining the terrible month she had gone through.

"What? No!" Souji replied, which had been Amy's first reaction as well. He folded his arms. "I'll tell him I need to prove myself to you, and that I need to do it on my own. Someone like him has to respect that."

"I hope so. We may need to come up with another plan if he doesn't."

Souji's mouth twisted in a pout he would have denied. "This was supposed to be fool-proof. Youkai don't even exist."

Amy nodded, but she no longer felt as certain about the plan as Souji seemed to anymore. The hard looks Gentle fixed her whenever she mentioned the feather made her confidence falter. This one plan was supposed to buy them years, but Gentle was unraveling it with nothing but glares. Maybe they needed to think in terms of quantity: come up with more and more creative tasks and challenges. Perhaps some for Amy too, so she could prove she would be a good wife.

As she thought about it, a light appeared in the middle of the garden, between them and Gentle, showing a familiar figure as it faded away.

Torin.

"Quick—!" he began, but then he stopped just as abruptly, looking from Amy to Souji.

Amy pursed her lips and noticed Souji tensing up beside her, his hand around the grip of his sword.

Torin did not dare to state the nature of the emergency that took him there, to avoid revealing her identity as KyoryuPink.

"Master Souji!" Gentle yelled, standing up and holding his head between his hands.

Torin turned around, sighed, and looked back at his charge. "Ah. Never mind. Stay put." And then he disappeared again.

"What—?" Both Amy and Souji began at the same time.

"Master Souji!" Gentle repeated, having now sprinted all the way to them. "You just had a youkai in front of you!"

"That wasn't a youkai!" Amy protested.

Gentle remained focused on Souji's lack of action, so her abruptness was ignored this one time.

"That was lord Moushinosuke's friend," Souji said. "Even if he had been a youkai, it would have been rude to pluck a feather out of him."

"I know that he is lord Moushinosuke's friend!" Gentle replied. "But he is the one youkai we have available!"

Amy pouted while Souji managed to keep his expression a frown.

She didn't have time for this. If Torin had come looking for her, it meant there was an emergency somewhere and she was needed. But here she was, stuck in her house and having to listen to this.

"I will not get it for you," Gentle continued. "I'll just make sure you are in the right place at the right time so you can grab it. Or ask for it, if you think such course of action more appropriate."

Great. So now Amy would have to coordinate the situation with Torin so he would never be in the same place as Souji. Or maybe he could ask him to make a public declaration stating how much of a youkai he was not.

Souji thanked Gentle for his concern and hurried to leave, claiming he had business to attend to. She did not blame him for it, and saw him go away, wishing she could do the same.

* * *

"They came at night," the man, a samurai from a neighboring land, spoke while kneeling in front of Moushinosuke's throne, eyes cast down, covered with sweat, blood, and dirt. He spoke with a sense of urgency but with respect, as if he addressed his own lord. "Or maybe they appeared in the early hours of the morning. We don't know. They were there before we realized it, all those carts aligned in a circle, promising wonders never seen before. _Granny Providence's Carnival of Miracles_ was written on the carts. We went out of curiosity, and at the start they really were miracles. So many strange creatures performing for our delight, apparently tamed—but it was a trap.

"As soon as most of the people of the village, families mainly, were inside the circle, they attacked. That witch, Granny Providence, became a monster herself, and summoned many others." He started to tear up as he continued. "They didn't stand a chance. The creatures, they—they let a child go to ask my fellow samurai for help. They arrived as soon as they could, ready to face them. But—" he hung his head further, in shame and sorrow "—none of us could do anything. They were too many, too powerful. The village burned down. There were casualties. Among them—among them our lord. That's why I beg you, lord Moushinosuke! We have heard that in your land live the most powerful warriors, strong beyond our imagination. Please, send them forth to help us! We, all the samurai who remain, will swear fealty to you. Please! For our families!"

At the last word, he punched the ground with his fist and waited for an answer, barely controlling his trembling.

After witnessing such display, Utsusemimaru could not remain unmoved. He took a step up and knelt next to the foreign samurai in front of Moushinosuke.

"My lord, this can only have been the work of the Deboss Army. As a Kyoryuuger—" _it is my duty to assist them_ , he was about to say. But as Moushinosuke's samurai, he should obtain his permission first, as this mission would take him out of Moushinosuke’s territory. "As a Kyoryuuger, I beg you to grant me leave to go help these people."

He also hung his head low, but he could picture Moushinosuke in his mind. The warlord would surely be stroking his mustache as he reflected on the matter. If Utsusemimaru knew him at all, Moushinosuke would grant his permission, and would even consider going himself. He was a good man, unwilling to turn his back on a desperate plea such as this one. But, even if he could now roam the castle as long as he did not overdo himself, his health had not recovered enough to permit a charge into battle.

_Please, my lord. Do not force me refuse your help,_ Utsusemimaru thought, and for a moment his heart yearned even harder for lord Daigo's return. As a Kyoryuuger himself, he could fight in his uncle's name. But where was he? Why had he not returned? He must have had a good reason. Utsusemimaru would not start doubting the young lord again. It had only happened once and he still regretted it.

_Now, if he could only hurry…_

"Very well," Moushinosuke said, bringing Utsusemimaru back to reality. "I will allow it. Utsusemimaru, please gather your comrades."

"My lord!" Utsusemimaru said as he stood and left the room in a hurry, glad his lord had not made any comment about joining the fray—and wanting to avoid giving him the opportunity to change his mind.

Now, about the rest. Blue, Utsusemimaru could go and ask himself, and send Pteragordon with messages for Black, Pink, and Green. If Blue and Stegotchi would let him join them on their way, they could save time.

As he thought of that, Torin appeared in the middle of the garden, a few meters ahead of him. Utsusemimaru could not contain his joy as he hurried over, expecting to find the young lord alongside his mentor.

Alas, Torin was alone.

Utsusemimaru's disappointment must have been evident in his face, because Torin raised a hand as if to stop him before he spoke. "We'll talk about Daigo later. The Deboss Army has appeared not that far away! The Kyoryuugers are needed!"

Utsusemimaru pursed his lips and nodded, and proceeded to explain the report from the other samurai.

Torin nodded as he listened. "Yes, this is bound to be the same situation," he said. "Hurry there! I'll get the others!"

So Utsusemimaru did.

Having been the first to know about the situation, the first one to depart, and thanks to Pteragordon's flying ability, Utsusemimaru got there before all the others. The landscape was as the samurai had described it: the houses destroyed as if a horde of a thousand warriors had trampled them and, in the middle, the carts with the name "Granny Providence's Show of Miracles" painted on the side, formed a circle. Each of them contained a creature that looked harmless at first sight. If he had not been aware of their true nature, even he would have been fooled by their adorable appearances.

He wanted to charge in, but he needed to stay put and wait for the others.

Except that, at that moment, the sound of children crying started from within the carts.

Utsusemimaru cursed under his breath. Uncharacteristic of him, but the enemy had made the lowest of moves. KyoryuGold closed his fists, tightening them as he took a deep breath. He should wait. The enemies were numerous and strong. It would be a bad idea to go in alone.

The crying grew louder. More desperate and scared.

His heart would not take it any longer. He needed to do something. He needed to take action _now_.

His hand, on its own, reached for the Zandar Thunder and drew it. Fine, the decision had been made.

He walked inside the circle carefully, with firm strides. As soon as he did, the crying stopped and strange music took its place. It was music unlike anything Utsusemimaru had heard before, music that invited the listener to have fun and rejoice, which only upset him further.

"I know who you are! Come out at once!" he called.

"Are you trying to ruin the fun so soon?" Candelira's voice said behind him.

Utsusemimaru turned around to face her, but instead of the Knight he expected, he found a human figure. The witch he had heard about.

"Let all those people free!" he said, pointing at her with his sword. "They are innocents who have nothing to do with you!"

"They have _everything_ to do with us!" she replied. "Their energy is how we are going to wake Deboss. But this time you're right." She scratched her chin thoughtfully. "This time, we only wanted to lure in a certain Kyoryuuger, but since he’s not here yet, I guess we can add you to the bait. What do you say, guys?"

The monsters cheered and emerged from the carts. Five of them and all identical.

Five monsters and a platoon of Zourima who poured in impossible numbers from the carts. Plus Candelira, which meant Luckyuro would not be too far. This would certainly prove to be a challenge, but Utsusemimaru remained resolved and Brave. He would not falter in the face of duty.

Utsusemimaru’s fingers tightened around Zandar Thunder's handle as he adopted a fighting stance in the center of the ring of creatures.

Then, one Black and one Blue figure landed on either side of Gold, weapons in hand.

"It seems we're right on time," Black said, nodding.

"We're here now, don't worry—" Blue began, but he stopped and counted the enemies. "Ah… Aren't there just too many?" He shook his head. "No matter! We'll take care of them!"

It was at that moment that the fight began. The three of them launched into an attack. Fighting several enemies at once was not unusual, but this time there was a monster for each of them and two more besides. Even if the team were complete it would be tough, but with two Kyoryuugers missing, things looked complicated.

But then, as if he had sensed it, Torin appeared in their midst wielding a sword. It was the first time any of them had seen him join them in battle.

"Pink and Green might not make it," was all he said, before the four of them plunged back into the fray. All questions, if any, would come later.

Even with Torin there, they were at a disadvantage. And there were the hostages to think about, who were still hidden from view and suffering who knew what in the clutches of the Deboss Army. This had to be one of the most distressing battles Utsusemimaru had ever been a part of, and he briefly wondered if the others shared his distress. They certainly seemed to.

Black and Blue fought harder than ever, hitting and punching and slicing. Torin also did his part, becoming a storm of feathers that used everything, from his swordsmanship skills to his wings, to his advantage. Zourima fell down and disappeared left, right, and center, and even the monsters took some hits. But it was taking too long—too, too long—and there didn't seem to be any end to the creatures.

Then, Candelira began to sing.

It was a catchy song. Utsusemimaru had to grant it to her. But it rallied her troops.

"Come on, now! Everybody, have fun! Fun! Fun! Fun!" Candelira said between stanzas.

"Yes!" yelled the monsters, pumping their fists while the Zourima bounced to the tune. They renewed their attack, obviously enjoying themselves. However, the Kyoryuugers were having the opposite of fun.

_We need all our comrades_ , thought Utsusemimaru as he stood panting in the middle of a tight circle of Zourima, barely able to hold his sword upright. One of the monsters pushed its way in, the better to leer at Utsusemimaru’s fruitless determination.

A quick glance showed him that the others were not faring any better. One of Black's knees hit the ground as he tried to hold off the blade of a second monster. Blue ran to tackle some of the Zourima and open a path for Black to get out of there and recover, but other foot soldiers clung to Blue's arms and legs, making it impossible for him to help.

Even Torin's situation was difficult. He faced the other three monsters by himself, and they did not intend to engage in a fair fight.

_Amy-dono, KyoryuGreen, where are you?_ Utsusemimaru thought. _King-dono! Come help your comrades! Don't make me regret my faith in you!_

This time, a distant rumble answered his silent plea. It came closer and closer, and grew louder and louder, and what at first seemed a red dot on the horizon became a red Zyudenryuu Utsusemimaru had never seen before. On top of its head there was a Kyoryuger donned in bright red.

"King-dono?" Utsusemimaru whispered.

"Finally!" Torin said on his right as he cleaved through the circle of Zourima with his sword. "Gabutyra and KyoryuRed have arrived!"

* * *

"That looks better than I expected from what Torin said," King mused as he and Gabutyra approached the battleground.

_Don't sing victory so soon,_ his companion replied with a growl that reached King’s heart, where the meaning became clear. _There are too many of them._

"I know, I know. I won't. But you have my back, don't you, Gabutyra?"

The mechanical tyrannosaurus roared mightily, which meant yes, he did have King's back, and he always would. The roar shook the Zyudenryuu's entire body, forcing King to jump off and land on top of one of the carts. He laughed on his way down, happy to have the opportunity to punch the face of someone who deserved it.

Stegotchi, Pteragordon, and Parasagun, the other Zyudenryuu who awaited their turn to intervene, cheered upon seeing their old friend. They knew what his presence meant.

All Zyudenryuu had high standards regarding how and when to choose a human partner, but Gabutyra had always been the strictest among them. He would not allow just anyone to take this kind of risk, not even for a call as important as protecting their beloved Earth. This human must have proven himself again and again and again until it became clear he was just as Brave and even more stubborn than Gabutyra himself—neither of which was a small feat.

Thus, as the newly appointed KyoryuRed joined his comrades, Gabutyra did so with his own, and waited, each of them aware that from now on, things would take an incredible turn. Hopefully for the better.

* * *

"Ki—KyoryuRed!" Ucchii exclaimed as King landed with a loud _thud!_ on top of the main cart of the exhibit.

"Took you long enough," KyoryuBlack said in a disapproving tone.

King laughed awkwardly as he scratched the back of his helmet and bowed his head. "Sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to keep you waiting.”

“I am so happy to see you again, King-dono!” Ucchii said as he stood up upright once more.

“Me too, actually,” KyoryuBlue chimed in, having gotten rid of the Zourima holding him. “It's a good thing we're in a Carnival already; one more ally is a cause of celebration!”

A long moment of silence from both fronts followed that statement to the astonishment of KyoryuBlue. Even the Zourima seemed to be wincing, and Torin held his beak and gazed in a different direction.

“What?” he asked to no one in particular.

King took the opportunity to jump down from the cart and join the others. He stood in front of Black, Blue, and Gold— Ucchii. He had missed him. Lots. His kindness, his resolution, his Brave. His warmth whenever they happened to touch each other. But this was not the time to share those thoughts and feelings.

“Fine,” King said adopting a fighting position. “Let's get this over with and rescue all the good people trapped here.”

The other three Kyoryugers and Torin made an affirmative noise and followed his lead, as people always seemed to do. King still did not know how that happened, but he would always go with the flow. Sometimes it came in handy. Like back in his uncle's castle. Or right now.

"Try and stop us!" King called and sprinted forward, toward the enemies, who retaliated in turn.

They were obviously the same guys, even if the one in charge of this platoon was different.

"Was Dogold replaced?" King asked at one point, when he found himself back to back with Ucchii.

"King-dono?" Ucchii replied.

"The last two times we fought him, he lost, and now there's someone else, so I was wondering…"

"Ah. I would not know. I have not seen any trace of him since the last time we fought him. Fortunately. But the Deboss Knights rotate in their duties, and sometimes Candelira takes over."

"I see," King replied nodding. Then, he patted Ucchii's shoulder. "By the way, Ucchii, I missed you a lot while I was on the island." Now that he did not have to yell across the field, this seemed like the perfect moment to share his thoughts and feelings.

Ucchii, who was about to take a step forward, faltered. "King-dono!" he exclaimed, sounding scandalized.

King grabbed Ucchii’s forearm to help him stabilize. He wasn’t able to stop a note of sadness from reaching his voice when he asked, "You didn't miss me?"

"Did I…? King-dono, I—"

"You two!" Black called. "If you have time to talk, you have time to fight! We're kind of busy over here!"

"My apologies!" Ucchii replied and hurried back into the fight.

"On it, on it!" King followed, wondering if maybe he had set his hopes too high. After all, with the way Ucchii looked at Moushinosuke… He shook his head and kicked a Zourima out of the way. KyoryuBlack was right; they needed to focus on the important matter at hand. There would be time to talk later.

As he thought of that, he found himself in front of one of the monsters. It raised its claws, ready to rip his head off. King ducked at the right time for it to miss. His head, still on his shoulders, was now in front of the monster's bellybutton. A swollen, ugly, gray thing. A well-applied punch there would surely hurt a lot, so King head-butted it right there and then. As expected, the creature doubled over itself, yelling and...

...and it disappeared. It just poofed out of existence.

"...huh," King mused. Then, he looked at the other monsters. They all looked the same, unlike the monsters he had fought that time in the town, where both monsters were completely different. Well, that made things easier. "Everyone! Punch them in the bellybutton!" he called as he ran among the other Kyoryuugers to spread the news. "The one that doesn't disappear is the real one!"

It took a moment for everyone to catch on, and the first one to follow his instructions was Ucchii. However, as it became clear King was onto something, they all did it and soon there was only one monster and a handful of Zourima left.

"Oh, no! You figured it out!" Candelira said, holding her head between her hands. "What shall we do?"

"I know! I know!" Luckyuro said, appearing from behind her with his watering can in hand. "I'll take care of it!"

But, as he was saying it, King readied his fist. "Rocket Punch!" he yelled and launched himself at the final monster.

The monster hit one of the carts, breaking it in half. When the Kyoryuugers got close to investigate, they found only the rubble. King's punch had done it. The monster had disappeared for good.

"All right," Luckyuro said, looking from his can to the spot where the monster should have been. "That one was unexpected. Maybe next time I should be closer to them?"

Candelira patted his head. "It's fine, Luckyuro. We got what we wanted anyway!"

Immediately, Ucchii stood between them and King. "What are you planning now?" he asked.

"We can't tell you," Luckyuro said.

"It's a surprise!" Candelira continued. "But our part here is over. See you later!" She threw them a kiss and the both of them vanished.

As soon as the Joyful Knight and her assistant disappeared, people began to emerge from the carts. More than it would be normal to expect judging by their size. As if the carts connected Earth with a different world, one that was not a good place, since everyone seemed so happy to return.

"This was too easy," Blue said. "I don't like it."

"We are of the same heart, KyoryuBlue," Ucchii said. "If their sole intention was to lure KyoryuRed into the open, we cannot drop our guard."

"Lure me?" King said. "Why? I would have returned anyway!"

"It took you a month, you jerk!" KyoryuBlack hit the back of King's head as he said it. "What were you even doing all this time?"

King rubbed the spot as if instead of the helmet Black had hit his head and bowed slightly. "Oh. Sorry," he replied. "I spent all this time working as hard as I could."

The exchange had sent Ucchii into fretting and looking from Black to Red and vice versa, but when it finished and the samurai heard those words from King, he nodded and hit his chest with his closed fist.

"Just like we all expected you would, my lord!" he said.

Right in that moment, KyoryuGreen showed up, covered in dust and trying very hard not to pant.

"You are so difficult to find," he said. "So, what did I miss?"

* * *

As they helped the people out of the carts and explained the recent course of events to both them and KyoryuGreen, Utsusemimaru could not help but be distracted by the words lord Daigo said during battle. His focus should have been somewhere else, not in repeating that _I missed you_ over and over and over in his head, each time in a different degree of politeness and tenderness, until he forgot the original. However, its sincerity was never put into question.

Utsusemimaru cursed his slow reaction and wished he had been able to say that he too had missed the young lord. To do it right then, following an impulse, as lord Daigo himself had done it. But the moment had been lost, and the samurai did not know how to bring it back. Perhaps it would be better to let it go and never mention it again. Such things could only lead to pain and further disappointment. Impulsiveness had never worked well for him.

He looked around, trying to locate lord Daigo. He remained in his bright red Kyoryuuger garments, cheering up the people alongside KyoryuBlue. Green and Black, meanwhile, were dismantling the rest of the carts of the Miracle Carnival, just in case. Green had a lot of energy and frustration to burn after having arrived so late to the battlefield. Torin, meanwhile, had left as soon as they freed the prisoners and held a conference with the Zyudenryuu not that far away from there.

The samurai realized he should be doing something instead of just standing there looking listless. But who should he help?

The decision was made for him when a little girl tugged his hand.

"Have you seen my father?" she asked. "I can't find him."

Utsusemimaru knelt down in front of her. She was adorable and so small. Not older than six, her innocent eyes were clouded by a confused expression. She also possessed the cutest button nose, which she scratched with a finger, and her thick, black hair was arranged in two pony tails that stuck from the sides of her head. All Utsusemimaru wanted to do was hug her and comfort her and tell her she would be fine.

"I cannot say I have, my lady," he said, soft and warm, his hand on her shoulder. "But I will gladly help you to look for him."

"Thank you!" she replied and clung to his neck for a sweet second.

The samurai held her for a moment before releasing her and standing up to begin the search. She followed him, as a baby duck would her mother, holding his hand. The girl described her father with as much detail as possible to make him easier to find. Utsusemimaru took note and looked around for anyone who matched those characteristics.

"Did you save everyone?" the girl asked as they walked around.

"We did, the Kyoryuugers. As a team we fought the Deboss Knight who held you and your family and friends prisoner." And who had some mysterious plan yet to be revealed. Utsusemimaru could not get distracted by the enemy—he could not let lord Daigo down again.

The girl's eyes sparkled. "You must be so strong!"

"We all are, and together we are even stronger!"

She laughed and bounced, delighted, and Utsusemimaru felt all his efforts truly had a meaning.

Right then, they found the girl's father. He ran to hug her, which prompted Utsusemimaru to reluctantly let go of her hand. The man thanked him, to which the samurai replied it had been nothing. Then, everyone went on their way, as more people waited to be reunited with their families.

It was late in the afternoon when the Kyoryuugers were ready to return to their own land. Their own homes.

"Thank you very much for your hard work, everyone," lord Daigo said to the others as they were ready to part since, as expected and despite the young lord's friendly disposition, they refused to journey back together.

"It's been a pleasure, KyoryuRed," Blue said. "But I must hurry home now."

"Please, call me King!"

"What? Of course not!" Black said.

"Why not?" Green asked.

"That is what I have always called him," Utsusemimaru said.

"That's because you don't know what it means," Black grumped. "Have someone else explain it to you. Or not. Whatever. Do as you want." With that, he jumped away and left with Parasagun.

That served as a signal. Green and Blue left as well with their respective Zyudenryuu, leaving Utsusemimaru and lord Daigo alone.

"What a terrible team this is," lord Daigo commented as he changed back to his normal clothes.

Utsusemimaru could only agree, but to say it in such a straightforward manner would have been rude. "I cannot deny there is a room for improvement," he replied. He also followed the young lord's lead and took off his own Kyoryuuger garments, feeling happy for the chance of seeing lord Daigo's face once more. He longed to reach out and stroke his cheek, but he contained himself, hiding his hands within his sleeves, and carried on talking about their comrades. "However, we fulfill our duties and stop the Deboss Army whenever they appear."

Lord Daigo hummed back, an answer Utsusemimaru could not decipher. Then, he stretched and put his hands on the back of his head. "Ah, I guess we still have time to figure this out. Besides it's getting late and I want to see my uncle."

"Of course. If I may, could I offer you Pteragordon's help to return to the castle? Since he can fly, it would be faster."

"That's true. But I'm not sure how Gabutyra will take it. I think he is of the jealous kind."

Which was a fair point, even if Utsusemimaru could not make a comment on Gabutyra's temperament just yet. But before he could find a suitable answer, a sinister weeping came from the dark behind them. A strange way to describe someone crying, but Utsusemimaru could not think of any other way.

The samurai extended one hand to cover lord Daigo and reached for his sword with the other. "My lord, stay there."

As soon as he said it, Aigallon showed himself, wiping his cheeks. "It's finally my turn!" he said. "I'm so happy it makes me want to cry!"

Just when everyone had left. This had been the Knights' intention all along.

Utsusemimaru cursed himself for not seeing it and for not taking lord Daigo away sooner. "Begone, Aigallon. The Deboss Army has suffered enough defeats for today." He said it as sternly as possible, despite knowing his words would lack all effect on the recipient.

"Oh! I plan to. But I thought you might like to see this first." Aigallon replied and pulled something from behind him. Or more like _someone_.

The Sorrowful Knight held prisoner the little girl Utsusemimaru had helped earlier that day.

The samurai's mouth became a thin line and he felt anger spreading all over his body and his mind, until he could not think of anything else. His field of vision reduced and became a tunnel at whose end was only the enemy and the child.

" _How dare you?_ " he said, trembling.

He heard lord Daigo's voice calling his name as if it came from a land so far away it could barely reach him. Instead of answering, Utsusemimaru unsheathed his sword and walked toward Aigallon.

" _Let her go,_ " he said, cold as ice.

"Why, though? I think I'd rather keep her," Aigallon replied shaking the girl and making her cry.

"Enough!" roared the samurai, raising his sword and ready to strike.

"Utsusemimaru!" lord Daigo yelled, and the use of his full name was enough to snap him back into reality. That and the push against his shoulder, which sent him to the ground. It hurt more than just his pride, but the impact did a favor for him. Once he shook his head, he could see clearly again.

He did not like what he saw.

As soon as he was able to turn around, he figured out the real trap. Aigallon was to anger him and distract him so Dogold could take over his body. However, lord Daigo had saved him, putting himself in the way of danger. Utsusemimaru turned around in time to see the suit of armor engulfing the figure of his young lord.

"Lord Daigo!" Utsusemimaru yelled as he scrambled back up.

"Oho. We have a twist," Aigallon said, throwing the child into Utsusemimaru to knock him down again. "But he finally has a body, so he should stop complaining now."

"No!" Utsusemimaru said. He wrapped the girl in his arms looking for some comfort. However, he found himself holding a laughing Zourima, which he promptly pushed away.

Mockery. It was all a cruel mockery from the start.

He felt like crying. He felt ashamed and hurt and alone. This was his fault. His carelessness caused this. His naivete and gullible nature made this happen.

Dogold stood up and flexed his hands. "This body is so strong!" He threw a couple of punches and kicks into the air. "Amazing. I want to test it! Now!" he said and unsheathed his own weapon. "Perhaps I didn't need you after all, Utsusemimaru. Perhaps no one ever did. Just look at what you did to your precious young lord."

That hurt. It stung like only the truth could.

Even as he drowned in an ocean of pain, Utsusemimaru knew what he should do. He should defeat Dogold once and for all and set his lord free. Whatever the price. Whatever that might entail, it would be a better fate than spending the rest of one's life being used to destroy everything good on Earth.

"Yes, King-dono," Utsusemimaru whispered, Zandar Thunder in his hand again. "I did miss you. And I miss you right now. I'm so sorry."

Then, he charged.


	7. Chapter 7

Like a distant memory, King remembered calling Ucchii, and only because he had used the samurai's full name. Why had he done that when his nickname was a thousand times better? It was more him, and more… more intimate.

Oh, it had been because Ucchii had not listened at first. But why? He was supposed to listen. He always did.

As King made an effort to recall the events, details appeared in his mind, although fuzzy at first. King had to warn Ucchii about something. Something bad, and Ucchii had not listened. King grew upset. Perhaps it was too late already, and Ucchii had suffered that bad thing and he, King, had been unable to stop it.

Angry, he got so angry thinking about Ucchii getting hurt because of his failure. He did not like it, and that made him feel worse.

_Yes, young lord,_ said a voice he had heard before. _Be angry. Be upset. Hate me. You have so many reasons for it._

Hate? Had King ever hated anyone? Not that he could remember. He had never had any reason…

_You do now_ , the voice answered. _Or will. I’ll use you. I’ll use your body to kill dear little Utsusemimaru. And then everyone you know and love!_

Everyone? That might take a while, with all the people King had met during his travels.

_It doesn't matter!_ the voice continued, although now it sounded more like a tantrum. _The point is that you won't be able to stop it. And you'll watch. I will make you watch!_

Do you think I'll stay idle while that happens?

_Of course not. You won't be idle. You will be the one killing them. It will be with your own hands that they'll find their demise. Like right now! Look!_

King opened his eyes and saw the world through two slits instead of his normal field of vision. As if he wore a mask. It was night, and he held a sword he did not remember unsheathing. He was fighting. Maniacally. Fiercely. With ill intent. He never fought like that. There was no Brave in his movements, only the intention to destroy. The intention to kill.

To kill Ucchii, since he was the one clashing swords with him. He looked tired and angry and… was he crying?

Yes, those were tears streaming from his eyes.

"Dogold!" Ucchii yelled. "Release him! King-dono! King-dono, please! Can you hear me?"

Yes, I can—

"Yes, he can hear you," replied the same voice King had heard. "But he can't answer. He can't do anything out of his own free will anymore! He is _mine_!"

One strong push and Ucchii stumbled backwards, despair obvious on his face.

Everything fell into place right then, and King realized what had happened. He remembered it all now: the trap, how he had tried to warn and then save Ucchii. How he had been captured. He got angry again. So angry, and then he heard Dogold laugh.

"Yes, that's it. This is better than I expected!" the Rageful Knight exclaimed and launched a new attack on Ucchii. The samurai defended himself, but his heart did not seem entirely in it. Dogold's sword nearly cut through his defenses more often than not while the Rageful Knight kept taunting them both.

The _Rageful_ Knight. That was it, King thought. Dogold wanted to keep him angry so he could retain power over him.

_Well, yes. Anger is a basic emotion. You can't control it, and I just know that only makes you more furious._

Dogold had a point there. Anger was a normal human emotion. This meant it was not evil by itself. There was nothing wrong with getting angry, with being upset or even furious. But there had to be a balance. King knew that. His father had taught him that. Embrace your emotions, acknowledge them, and then let them go, so you can act and think clearly.

_What? No!_

King closed his eyes again and took a deep breath.

_What are you doing? Look! We—_ you _are about to wound Utsusemimaru-chan! You will carve his guts out while he's still alive and kicking and screaming!_

King let the anger flow in him. He let it make his entire body shiver. He screamed to the heavens.

_That's better. That's much—_

Then he breathed again, and he just let go. He did not push his feelings away. It was like opening his hands and releasing flower petals to the wind, which then took them away. They had fulfilled their purpose and their time was over.

_What happened? What are you doing?_

Enraged, Dogold raised his sword to hit Ucchii, but it did not strike. It didn't even lower. King had stopped his arm—he had regained control over his own body.

"Try and stop me!" he said, now with his own mouth and tongue and teeth, and he stretched as much as he could, far from the constraints of the suit of armor that surrounded him.

Next thing he knew, the pieces of Dogold were scattered on the ground around him, and he was free.

"King-dono!" Ucchii exclaimed. Fresh tears fell from the samurai’s eyes, but King knew this time those were a different kind of tears.

"Yes, I’m back!" King replied, laughing and unable to stop himself from reaching out to wipe Ucchii’s cheeks with his thumb.

He was rewarded with a hug. A hug so tight and warm that the rest of the feelings he had for Ucchii made a glorious return, so he took the samurai's face in his hands and kissed him.

The best part, however, was when Ucchii kissed him back.

They did not even notice when the pieces of armor around them vanished.

* * *

In the end, Utsusemimaru and lord Daigo returned to the castle on the backs of their respective Zyudenryuu, which suited Utsusemimaru, who had a lot to think about.

He had begun to think the feeling of lord Daigo's lips on his would never vanish. Nor the taste of his mouth, or his smell. Or his… all of him, really. What a wonderful kiss that had been, and lord Daigo had seemed to think so as well. Yet, Utsusemimaru felt like he had gone beyond all boundaries and imposed himself on lord Daigo when he should have been proper. He should have been proper and… rejected lord Daigo? Would that have been the correct course of action?

Utsusemimaru lacked experience regarding the love between lords and their retainers—or any kind of love, for that matter. Deep down, though, he knew that a rejection would not fare well in the end. Regardless, there was no changing the past. It was already done. Utsusemimaru had not only been kissed: he had initiated the hug that led to it.

_But he had felt so happy._

Right when Utsusemimaru thought he had lost him forever and—worse, so much worse—that he would have to end the young lord's misery with his own hands before Dogold forced him to do some unspeakable evil, lord Daigo literally broke Dogold apart with the force of his Brave. It had been too much. Unable to help himself, Utsusemimaru had jumped to embrace his master. Such a display was unbecoming, like his tears.

Like that kiss. The one lord Daigo initiated and Utsusemimaru answered. The one that surely meant nothing but as a celebration of lord Daigo’s newly regained freedom. However that had been good enough. More than Utsusemimaru would have ever dared to hope for.

A lord taking a samurai as a lover was not unheard of, but Utsusemimaru had never experienced it firsthand. Granted, he had only served one lord in his life, but if he had been asked, he would have agreed in a heartbeat. It just had never happened. However, just because the number of lords he served had doubled did not mean the chances of such a request had doubled as well.

Yet, he would too—now that he thought about it—accept to become lord Daigo's lover if the young lord wished so.

Right then, as he did think about it, Utsusemimaru promised himself that, if lord Daigo ever made that request of him, he would never impose his feelings on his lord. Beggars cannot be choosers—and, truth be told, it would be impolite to beg in this situation. In any case, whatever lord Daigo might wish for—to forget about a thoughtless impulse or to join him in bed—Utsusemimaru would comply and keep his unworthy feelings to himself.

As soon as he reached that conclusion, he realized the castle was already below them and Pteragordon had started the descent. Good. Lord Moushinosuke would be waiting for them…

No. He would not, Utsusemimaru realized at that moment. Unless Torin had returned here after the battle, no one would have informed Moushinosuke about his nephew's return. Panicking now, Utsusemimaru hurried to make sure the news had been delivered before lord Daigo arrived. Yes, it was late already, but lord Moushinosuke would want this information as soon as possible so he could at least get dressed.

No, he did not forget about his predicament. He only pushed it to the back of his mind for a moment. A moment he hoped would last long.

* * *

Torin had returned to Amy's house that night to tell her about the mission she had missed. He also listened patiently as she vented her frustrations. It was late, and even Gentle had retired for the night, so if she kept her voice low enough, they would not be discovered.

"Why do I have to be locked up here all the time?" she asked as she paced all around her room. "I just—" She stopped, feeling all too vulnerable all of the sudden. But she felt she should say it. The weight in her heart demanded to be shared. "I just feel so alone sometimes…"

Torin nodded slowly, his gaze shifting to where the Pteragordon doll rested. He reached out for it and held under his eyes, right in front of his beak for careful examination. "A shared secret is less burdensome," he said.

"That's a present for Ucchii," Amy said, flopping down in front of the bird-man. "I've been meaning to give it to him for a while, but I can't even leave the house." As she spoke, she realized that she sounded like a spoiled child, but she did not particularly care at the moment. She felt cheated on by the unfair world that surrounded her. "I thought of giving it to him out of the uniform to let him know who I am, but I'm afraid he'll bolt away in the other direction. You know how he is."

Torin chuckled. "I know indeed. However, I think it would be worth the trouble. He thinks highly of you."

"He thinks highly of KyoryuPink."

"Who is yourself."

There was no way to fight that logic, so she didn't. She just sighed and folded her arms.

Torin continued. "He is not the only one you could share your secret with. The young man in the garden this afternoon—"

"Souji? He's my dear friend, but I'm not sure he's ready for this kind of thing. I don't even know what he thinks of the Kyoryuugers."

"Sometimes, I wonder why I let you have secret identities," Torin muttered as he put the Pteragordon doll back to its place. "Just remember that people tend to surprise us. Usually for good. We need only be Brave and take the chance."

Well, in Amy's case, the secret existed so she could wander around fighting monsters without anyone hassling her about it. Before Gentle's time, anyway. But instead of going back to that particular issue, she remained in this one. "I'll give Ucchii the doll as soon as possible and as myself, and I'll think about telling Souji."

Torin nodded. "Very well. I must take my leave now. Rest. You'll need your strength for tomorrow."

"What's happening tomorrow?"

Torin snapped his fingers. "If I know Moushinosuke—and I certainly do—Daigo’s welcome feast! He won't allow any more delays."

Amy grinned. It made sense. And it would be the perfect excuse to see Ucchii, since her family had been invited. Besides, she was looking forward to seeing King again, and asking all about his Zyudenryuu, and scolding him for leaving poor Ucchii alone for so long.

"I'll see you there tomorrow, then," she said, although in a slight interrogative tone, given how her mentor’s schedule leaned to the side of unpredictability.

He nodded. "Yes, we will see each other tomorrow. Please consider everything we have discussed today."

"I will! Good night, Torin."

A final nod and Torin disappeared in a beam of light.

Amy went up to pet the Pteragordon doll's head. Yes, she would be Brave. She would be upfront with Ucchii this time, and she would tell King too. He seemed like the kind of person who would not mind about her status. She would prod Souji further, and see what came out of it. Hopefully not more secrets.

With that in mind, she lay down on her futon and got herself ready to sleep.

It was then, and only then, that she remembered about the youkai situation and how she had not said a word to Torin about it. She covered her head with the blanket and comforted herself with the thought that she had time to tell him the next day during the party.

Yes, that would work.

* * *

The feast was finally— _finally_ —to be held that night. Moushinosuke would not tolerate any more delays, and anyone who dared to postpone even the slightest detail would have to answer to the warlord's sword.

Those were big words, and anyone who had worked for Moushinosuke for more than one day knew the actual sword was meant for invading enemies. Nevertheless, they all hurried to make this the wonderful experience the entire castle had been expecting for a month. The entire castle and the entire town, since at Ucchii's suggestion, they too would have food and music to celebrate both Daigo's return and the announcement of the line of succession.

"Everything will be done as you ordered, my lord," said the chief of the cooks before bolting to the kitchen, followed by the rest of the service after they made similar promises.

Soon enough, Moushinosuke was left alone with Daigo, Ucchii, and a handful of guards.

"The one good thing about this," Moushinosuke continued, "is that the physician gave me permission to be in the feast for one entire hour."

"That's wonderful!" Daigo said.

"As long as you do not over-exert yourself," Ucchii pointed out.

Moushinosuke laughed. "Yes, yes. As long as I do not over-exert myself."

"I'm happy you're better, Uncle," Daigo said with an honesty and enthusiasm so real and candid it warmed the man's heart. "I'm sorry it took me so long to return."

"It's all right, nephew. Although I would be tempted to ask Ucchii to chain himself to you so you don't leave again. However, since you are both Kyoryuugers now, the result would be the same."

Daigo laughed and scratched the back of his head. "I wouldn't mind that!"

"Ki—Lord—!" Ucchii exclaimed, now entirely red. "Why would you—I mean—Ah!"

"It's fine, Ucchii. You don't have to." Still laughing, Daigo reached out to grab Ucchii's hand, which froze the samurai in place.

_Ooooooh!_

Moushinosuke smiled and stood up, hiding his hands in his sleeves. "Well, if you excuse me," he said, pretending he had not noticed anything, "I need to go rest. Please make yourselves ready for this evening. And I'm serious – do not go anywhere."

"Yes, Uncle."

"Yes, my lord."

On his way to his quarters, Moushinosuke reflected on this turn of events. Something like this was not unheard of and, given what he knew about their temperaments, it would be unlikely either of them would end up hurting the other. They were young, and it would cause no harm. Besides, given Ucchii's nature, they would remain discreet. Therefore, Moushinosuke would continue to pretend nothing had happened.

With that, he lay down on his futon and proceeded with his nap. Even if he was not to remain at the feast for long, he would need his strength; he planned to have fun, no matter what the doctor said.

* * *

The entrance to the castle looked like a festival. Servants came and went, taking care of every detail. They all seemed happy and yes, it was part of their job to look happy while they worked, but theirs was a genuine enthusiasm. They were all well fed and well-dressed too. Amy had heard stories about lords who weren't that generous and would keep their servants working hard for morsels. She also knew neither her father nor Ucchii would serve such a lord. Personally, she would try to overthrow him.

Many important guests were there already, so her parents went to greet them as soon as they arrived. Amy, meanwhile, escaped to the other side, pretending to mingle while she actually looked for Ucchii, King, or Torin. Her father had decreed that Gentle's services would not be needed for the night; he was allowed to remain in town and assist the public party—and Amy was allowed the freedom to roam around carrying the package that contained the Pteragordon doll without anyone asking her awkward questions about it.

Trying not to call attention to herself, Amy followed the trail of the servants. This was not her first time in the castle, although she had never come this far within its walls before. She had always wanted to explore it, and this was an opportunity as good as any. If caught, she could always say she had gotten lost. In truth, though, she might get lost for real. This place was bigger than her father's estate and had more hallways and rooms and gardens.

Close to fifteen minutes later, she realized she had no idea where she was or how she had gotten there. It was a courtyard between one of the outer walls and what seemed to be a warehouse. A few carts were being unloaded and, as she moved closer to them, she discovered a familiar face in one of the merchants waiting there.

"Ian!" she called as she approached him.

He reacted with surprise and went to meet her, concern and amusement painted on his face.

"My lady," he replied, and as she prepared herself to scold him for using a title when she had asked him to use her name, she realized he had done it for the sake of appearances. They were in a very public venue. Maybe he had a sense of decorum after all.

"Had I know you’d go to these lengths just to see me…"

Then again, maybe not.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I got lost, and I can't find my way back," she replied.

"Ah. I see," Ian said, pouting. But he recovered soon. "Regardless, I won't complain about any circumstance that puts you in my path." He bowed. "It would be my honor to escort you to the hall."

"But you're working. I wouldn't want to get you in trouble."

"Your kindness humbles me. But I'm about to finish here. If you give me a second, this will be taken care of."

She nodded, so he went to keep talking with the people holding the horses. It took him two minutes to return and put himself entirely at Amy's disposal.

"Ready, my lady."

She curtsied and followed him.

"I didn't know you were this familiar with the castle, Ian."

He grinned. "I'm not, but I figured it would be more fun to be lost in good company."

She covered her mouth with her sleeve as she tried not to laugh too loud. It was impossible to disagree.

They got lost even further.

"I think we've seen that flower bush before…" Ian mused ten minutes later. They had not seen anyone else around which, with the party going on, meant that they were going in the opposite direction.

"Three times, at least," Amy answered. "Also, I'm not sure this is an area where uninvited guests are allowed."

"Well, you are an invited guest, and I'm your escort," Ian said, even if that was not what Amy had meant. "Let's take that hall again, but now let’s try the second turn to the left."

She agreed, and off they went again.

This time, the chosen way led them to yet another garden, but at least it was a new one. They heard voices, too. Whispers.

Ian made a signal with his hand for Amy to be silent and careful as they approached the voices. She nodded and did as instructed. The voices were too low for her to recognize them, so it was just as likely they could either be people they could ask for help, or people who would scold them for being there. She hoped for the former.

Those people turned out to be Moushinosuke and Torin themselves. So they would get both the help and the scolding if they were discovered, then. Amy would have risked it if she were alone, but she did not want to get Ian into trouble. Not when he had been so nice to her.

"Wait here," Ian said. "I'll go ask."

She grabbed his sleeve. "Wait. I should be the one going."

He looked at her hand and then at her face in a way that made her blush and let go.

"I mean," she continued, "I'm the one with the invitation and the excuse of getting lost to begin with." Besides, and this she could not say, she was sure Torin could intervene on her behalf. He knew her and her impulsiveness. Also, she could argue that she was trying to comply with the suggestion he had given her the night before—which she was.

Before either of them could protest again, though, another much more familiar voice spoke in the back: "There, Master Souji! That is your chance!"

Everyone turned then—Amy, Ian, Moushinosuke, and Torin—to find Gentle pushing a reluctant Souji toward Torin.

"I already told you he's not a youkai…" Souji mumbled with the conviction of someone who knew they would be ignored.

"I… am not a youkai," Torin repeated, staring at the newcomers.

Meanwhile, the spell that had apparently fallen over Amy vanished. Panicking, she left the protection of the shadows to dash all the way to where her fiance, her servant, and her mentor—and the warlord—were standing.

"Wait! Gentle! What are you doing?"

"Lady Aimi!" Ian exclaimed as he followed.

"You are not supposed to be here!" Amy and Gentle said at the same time.

"None of us, apparently," Souji said, his eyes darting from Amy to Ian.

"Excuse me! I think you dropped this!" someone else called from the same direction Ian and Amy had come from. She turned around to discover King holding the Pteragordon doll; she had dropped it in her surprise, and the cloth that covered it was already unraveling. He came forward to give it back, Ucchii close behind him.

"Ah! Thank you," she said as she took it. Then she decided to take the chance and offer it to Ucchii. "Here! This is for you!"

As expected, Ucchii froze as soon as he was addressed and would not take the doll.

"Utsusemimaru, don't be rude," Moushinosuke said, speaking for the first time since they had all appeared. He sounded amused.

"Mi—milord…" Ucchii replied out of reflex, but this time his hand went up slowly.

Amy then took a leap of faith and whisked off the cloth that covered her present. She needed to make him understand, to make him realize who she was, so he would stop being silly about talking with a woman. So she thought of a way, one that could also clue King in, so she pouted and exclaimed, " _Ucchii!_ " with her eyes fixed on his face.

What she didn't expect, though, was the collective gasp of astonishment that followed her friend's nickname.

"Oh!" King said all of the sudden, grinning. "I get it! You're KyoryuPink!"

Immediately, Ian hit the back of King's head. "Don't go around blurting out people's identities!"

Now everyone turned to look at Ian. Meanwhile, King rubbed the offended area and began to smile again.

"This is the second time you hit me like that, right?" He then held Ian's hand with both of his. "It's nice to meet you, KyoryuBlack!"

Ian did not deny it. He merely sighed in resignation.

Well, that had been completely unexpected.

Amy looked around again. Ucchii and Gentle seemed confused, Moushinosuke scratched his mustache with an expression as unreadable as Torin's, and Souji rubbed his face with his hand.

Amy braced herself for what the latter's reaction was going to be.

"If this is how it's going to be," her friend began, "then I have something to tell you as well."

And that was how the next-to-last cat came out of the bag.

* * *

One hour later, Utsusemimaru was still trying to digest what had happened. Suddenly, all the identities of the Kyoryuugers were in the open. Everyone's but Blue's, and Utsusemimaru had better warn him about lord Daigo's unfortunate loose tongue before he was found out too. However, the samurai had good reasons to believe something like this would not repeat in the future. Lord Daigo’s lack of caution could be attributed to the fact that the young lord was slightly inebriated by the time they had stumbled upon the group after spending some time at the feast already.

Lord Daigo had wanted to go looking for his uncle before the food was served, and Utsusemimaru himself was curious as to when the succession announcement would be made. Of course, when they found Moushinosuke all that commotion happened, and he forgot to ask.

The important thing was, though, that the Kyoryuugers truly came from all walks of life. That should not be surprising, since Brave did not belong to a selected few; everyone had it in them. They only needed to reach out for it in that special place inside their hearts.

Having reached that conclusion, Utsusemimaru turned his eyes back to the table where lord Daigo sat laughing and enjoying himself with the others. Pink, Green, and Black—Amy, Souji, and Ian—seemed to be comfortable enough despite the circumstances. Ian kept rolling his eyes at lord Daigo, and yet the ghost of a smile appeared on his mouth every so often; Souji, who Utsusemimaru knew only from a distance, seemed less serious than usual; and Amy looked much more cheerful than any time the samurai had happened to glance at her during events her family attended. The scene made Utsusemimaru wonder if this was what Moushinosuke's bones predicted, that his nephew had proved himself so charming and magnetic he could bring together even such a reluctant team.

Utsusemimaru felt the warmth in his heart grow, a warmth he’d only recently become accustomed to feeling, and that was reserved exclusively for the young lord. At the same time, he also realized he had spent the entirety of that hour sitting in a dark corner stroking the Pteragordon doll Amy had given him. While not expertly made, it was easy to recognize as KyoryuGold's Zyudenryuu companion. There was so much thought and care put into it that Utsusemimaru could only feel moved. And ashamed for having frozen in place as he usually did until Moushinosuke had chastised him into accepting it. He wanted to find a way to repay her kindness, if only by protecting her from getting into trouble with her family. He understood that the only reason her parents allowed her to stay at the table with them was because Souji, her fiance, was there too.

Moushinosuke and Torin were already talking to Gentle in the warlord's throne room, trying to convince him about the importance of KyoryuPink carrying on with her duties. That they used that precise room was not a coincidence and, even though using power to impress the man would yield faster results, Utsusemimaru would have preferred to use reason and logic. But it was not his place to comment on it; he could only hope it went well.

Before the incident, Utsusemimaru had spent the evening worrying about any young lady who tried to approach him. Or who tried to approach lord Daigo. Unworthy as he felt, to his shame he could not avoid feeling a needle sticking into his heart whenever the young lord laughed and flirted back with the young ladies in an effortless way—a way that was as foreign to Utsusemimaru as lord Daigo's chosen nickname. Now, fortunately, there was no flirting going on at the young lord's table, only merriment and laughter.

That exact moment was the one Ian chose to abandon all pretenses and snort behind his hand.

Despite being part of the same team, despite spending all that time wishing their teammates would grow closer, Utsusemimaru hesitated to join them. He justified it in his mind thinking that he remained lord Daigo's bodyguard, and his charge was doing well without him. So he kept to himself, drinking and playing with Pteragordon's tiny cousin.

The more he drank and the more thought, the more despondent he felt. Lord Daigo was strong enough to defeat Dogold by himself. He was so charming and friendly that people gathered around him like moths to fire. He would never be alone.

The conclusion was obvious: lord Daigo did not need Utsusemimaru, neither as a protector nor to be happy. Maybe he should call it a night and retreat to his quarters.

But then, the young lord appeared in front of him, startling him. "Ucchii! What are you doing here all alone?" He sounded a bit on the drunk side. Around as much as Utsusemimaru himself felt.

"King-dono," Utsusemimaru replied, bowing to give himself time to decide on his answer. But he did it too fast; when he straightened back up his vision swam, as though he had filled his head with air. He blinked to clear it. "It was not my intention to worry you. Your humble servant found himself caught deeply in his worthless thoughts."

"About what happened last night?"

"I—" Utsusemimaru began but never finished, both fighting a pout and hoping lord Daigo did and did not mean the kiss they had shared.

Lord Daigo scratched the back of his neck and grinned. "I have a knack for turning people's lives upside down. Even I have noticed."

The way he said those words made evident he was not sorry at all about it. At the same time, however, there was such a complete lack of arrogance in his earnest demeanor that Utsusemimaru's desire to pout vanished. He kept his eyes fixed on his drink for a moment longer, but he looked up at the end and found a gentle smile on the young lord's face.

"Am I a welcome nuisance, then?"

"You are indeed most welcome, my lord," Utsusemimaru said, preferring not to comment on the rest. But he smiled back.

Silence followed. Silence in which they kept staring and smiling at each other. Just as Utsusemimaru lost himself in the spark in lord Daigo's eyes that was entirely his own, just like the tip of his nose and the arch of his right eyebrow, and thought about how much he would like to spend time figuring out all the ways the young lord was entirely unique, it hit him how impertinent his actions were. However, before he could even utter an apology, lord Daigo spoke.

"Say, why don't we go outside and take a walk? It seems like you need some air."

"If that is your wish," Utsusemimaru managed to mumble. He stood up as fast as his head would allow without getting dizzy. Dizzier. Lord Daigo did not seem to notice it, luckily.

A few moments later, they walked out under the stars, with Utsusemimaru two steps behind lord Daigo, trying to collect his thoughts. He could not get too far with that endeavor, though.

"Why are you doing that?" lord Daigo asked, although without turning around. "Come walk by my side."

"Yes…" Utsusemimaru replied and closed the distance between them with a couple of strides. He kept his eyes fixed in front of them, feeling entirely lost and almost wishing for an ambush to distract himself from the warmth emanating from the man next to him. No attack came, however.

"I didn't like it," lord Daigo said, surprising Utsusemimaru, who at first thought he meant the kiss. But then, he continued. "Being used by Dogold like that to attack you."

How terrible it was that Utsusemimaru felt relieved by those words.

"But you are yourself now," the samurai answered. "And you did not hurt me."

The young lord stopped and turned around to face the samurai. He looked serious. "Dogold still wants you, I could feel it. I won't allow that! Your body is yours and you don't have to give it to anyone if you don't want to. Especially if their goal is to hurt others!"

"I… Thank you, King-dono," Utsusemimaru replied, his tongue too tied to say anything more complicated.

Lord Daigo smiled at him again. Utsusemimaru's brain panicked and made him blurt out the first words that appeared in his mind.

"I am so lucky because you are here with me."

Lord Daigo's eyes widened as much as his smile.

"I'm so glad you were the one my uncle chose you to take care of me. For so many reasons."

"I am glad too, King-dono," Utsusemimaru replied, with all the honesty in his heart, blushing even further.

"I wonder how many we agree on," lord Daigo continued, his eyes still fixed on the samurai.

Meanwhile, said samurai wondered whether he would have understood better if his mind had been clear.

"Only way to find out, I guess," the young lord continued, upon the lack of answer. He grabbed Utsusemimaru's hand, dragged him between the trees, and soon the samurai found himself with his back pressed against a trunk.

"Don't accept this just because of rank," lord Daigo said, his face close – so close – to Utsusemimaru's. "Tell me if you want to stop at any time, and I will."

Before the samurai could ask what that meant, lord Daigo's lips were on his once more. It surprised him, but even before his mind could make sense of things, Utsusemimaru's hands came to rest on the young lord's shoulders, and his mouth kissed him back.

No, he did not want to stop and, as the kiss grew more and more passionate, rank became irrelevant.

He was not sure if he said that out loud or not, because his senses were captivated as lord Daigo's hands began roaming all over him, even sneaking into places no one but he had touched ever before.

Yes, his body was his to offer to whomever he wished, and he wanted to do so to lord Daigo.

Utsusemimaru reciprocated in the same way he was caressed. His hands found their way down the young lord's waist and inside his clothes, making him moan against Utsusemimaru's ears. The sound was louder than all of Utsusemimaru's thoughts put together, and so the samurai could finally stop thinking, and lose all track of himself.


	8. Chapter 8

Dogold used the last of his strength to move all his pieces back to Deboss' Castle. He appeared on the main room, where Luckyuro stumbled upon him.

"Ouch," he said, squatting next to Dogold and poking a piece of the shattered armor's shoulder with a finger. "I guess Aigallon's plan didn't work out in the end." He sighed, folding his arms and shaking his head. "And after all the effort we put into it."

"Go away!" Dogold growled.

"Fine, fine. But I'll call the others. You need some help."

True to the little nuisance's word, Aigallon, Candelira, and Chaos soon surrounded Dogold, as witnesses of his humiliation.

"I knew I should have hung around for longer," Aigallon said, wiping a tear of regret from his own faceplate.

Candelira put a comforting hand on the Sorrowful Knight's arm. "It's not your fault you trusted him that much."

"Keep your comments to yourselves!" Dogold said, aware that the impact was lessened by his current state. He was not only broken and frustrated; he was also exhausted and scared of what Chaos' reaction would be, which he would never accept.

He did not know where to start explaining what had happened. Then he would have had to accept the arrogance of what he had done as well. However, there was no need for that. Chaos understood all he needed upon seeing him, which made Dogold go from scared to terrified.

In contemplative silence—the kind of silence the others felt compelled to respect—Chaos raised his hand and used his powers to put Dogold back together. Soon, the armor was piled up at Chaos's feet. Dogold waited for the priest to call a Cambrima or even a Zourima he could possess so they could finish this and move on. But that did not happen.

"I will not count this as a loss," Chaos said instead. "With this last attack, we have now the energy we need to awaken lord Deboss."

A cheer from Candelira and Luckyuro and an, "I'm so happy I could cry," from Aigallon followed the statement.

Chaos raised a hand once more and they quieted down.

"However, you have been granted enough opportunities, Dogold," Chaos continued as he picked up the helmet to examine it as if he had never seen it before. "And you have wasted them all. Even with the other Knights' help, you were unable to gain control over KyoryuGold's body as you wanted. Or even KyoryuRed's. Yes, I do know about that too," he added before Dogold could protest. Aigallon must have given his report already. "In consequence you are banned from seeing lord Deboss awaken."

Candelira, Luckyuro, and Aigallon gasped in unison, but Dogold remained quiet—quietly seething, that is. He could still go after them once they were all gone, and try to get a hold of Utsusemimaru once again. This time, he would make sure to succeed.

But then, Chaos ordered the others to carry Dogold's pieces to his chambers.

"Lord Chaos?" Dogold exclaimed, now panicking and making less of an effort to hide it.

"I will be indulgent with you no longer, Dogold," Chaos replied as he opened a large chest, one that felt dangerous. "A punishment is a punishment. Once inside, your powers will be useless."

"But lord Chaos!" Dogold repeated. "I helped gathering that energy! You can't do this!" He tried to take a peek at Aigallon, Candelira, and Luckyuro, who still cradled the rest of his armor and huddled behind Chaos.

As if unable to listen, Chaos signaled them to put the rest of Dogold inside the chest. The three of them looked at each other for a moment, but they could do nothing but obey.

Dogold felt how the chest blocked his powers little by little as they placed him inside. By then, he retained so little control that the only sound coming from his mouth was a continued and furious hissing. He could barely stand the looks of pity they directed at him.

"Torin and his Kyoryuugers will surely arrive while we are at work," Chaos said as he carefully placed Dogold's helmet on top of the rest of him. "We cannot risk you derailing the ceremony for a personal vendetta. But, I promise you, you will not be forgotten," Chaos finished as he closed the lid and the darkness engulfed the pieces of the now useless Rageful Knight.

* * *

King woke up in his room half-dressed and tangled with an also half-dressed but still asleep Ucchii. He rubbed his head to scare away the lingering headache. No matter how much he had drunk the night before, his hangovers tended to pass swiftly, and there was no reason this one would be different. Then, he sat up slowly and smiled a warm smile at the man next to him. King would forever cherish the memories of Ucchii's lips and hands, and how he in turn had given sweet caresses and kisses. He wanted to repeat the experience later—as often as possible—but there could be only one first time.

He stood up and stretched, trying not to make too much noise, and changed his clothes for a clean set. After that, he set out to the well to get some water. Not only for him, but also for Ucchii; he would need it, after all. He did not peg the samurai as the kind to drink often, and therefore he would need some looking after when he woke up. Something King decidedly did not mind.

It took him longer than expected, since a few of the most hardworking people of the castle were at work already. So he stopped here and there to exchange some words and impressions about the feast the night before and even helped with some heavy lifting on a few occasions. However, he only realized he had lost track of time when he walked into his room and found it empty. The futon was neatly folded in a corner with the rest of his belongings, and there was no trace of Ucchii. King felt a pinch in his heart, but he shook his head. Ucchii had probably gone looking for him. Or for something to eat or drink himself. Yes, that must be it.

With that in mind, King left the jug on the ground and ran his fingers through his hair to make himself a bit more presentable so he could go looking for Ucchii. Otherwise he would not be allowed in the kitchen—the cooks were strict about those things, and would scold him if a single hair fell in one of the pots. Regardless, once King and Ucchii were together again, they could laugh about the misunderstanding.

However, as he smoothed his hair, he felt someone's eyes fixed on him. King turned around toward the door and saw Ucchii at the entrance, arms folded and hidden in his sleeves. He looked impeccable. Only a hint of red in his eyes betrayed the party from the night before. He also looked as stern as when King had first met him, before he discovered the true Ucchii behind the façade. There was no smile on the samurai's face, no warmth in his expression—nothing to indicate this was the sweet and considerate—yet passionate—man King had slept with the night before. But before King could comment on it, Ucchii bowed and spoke, serious and formal and fast.

"My lord, your uncle wishes you to join him for breakfast."

Well, that made sense, although King wished Ucchii had started with a 'Good morning.' But nothing was ever truly lost, so he tried to remain cheerful and smiling.

"All right!" King replied, planning now to take advantage of Ucchii having to escort him to talk to him about what was going on. "Let's go, then. Have you had breakfast yourself yet? I haven't!"

But then, head still low, Ucchii continued: “Your humble servant appreciates your concern, my lord. However, I must disgrace myself and do you a most terrible discourtesy. It is my responsibility to make sure everything is ready so we can fulfill our next assigned duty. Your uncle will give you more details,” he added before King could ask about it. “Therefore, although it embarrasses me, I must request of you to go alone to join lord Moushinosuke in his quarters. In such a short walk you should be safe.”

By the end of Ucchii’s speech, King felt like a lost, lonely puppy in a storm as his idea crumbled down all around him. That was why he rarely bothered making plans; reality had the tendency to diverge from one’s expectations. Usually, that was the fun of it, but now King felt crushed to the very core.

All he wanted was to kiss the man in front of him, to drag Ucchii back to the futon and cuddle the reason for this unexpected coldness out of him. However, Ucchii seemed unwilling to have a conversation, and both of them had important business to attend to.

"Those are a lot of words just to say ’Sorry, I can't join you,’" King replied. "But fine. I can go on my own, even if I don't really get why." As he walked outside the room, he noticed how Ucchii moved outside his reach. The pain in King's heart became deeper and more intense. “Ucchii,” he began, but Ucchii had started walking away already.

“I must hurry, milord. There is a lot to prepare.”

“Yes, of course…” King replied.

Lord Daigo. Milord. Ucchii used those titles after all this time of calling him King-dono. He must have been regretting what happened the night before.

King saw Ucchii’s back disappear around a corner, leaving behind a path of broken dreams and hopes.

Slouching, and the saddest he had ever felt in his entire life, the brokenhearted King turned around and dragged his feet toward his uncle’s room. Maybe there he could find some comfort.

* * *

Despite having vowed to himself not to burden lord Daigo with his unworthy feelings, Utsusemimaru felt miserable when he woke up to an empty room. Disappointment followed his misery, and then he felt upset and angry at himself.

He should not yearn for more than was offered to him. Such feelings meant he had expectations, that he was an ingrate. He was uncouth. Improper. Lord Daigo had asked of him only the night, not the following day. Nor the following nights, if it came to that. It might not, if Utsusemimaru had not performed to the young lord's satisfaction—a possibility given his lack of experience and lord Daigo’s absence so soon after waking. In this, however, the samurai was torn between wanting to find out so he could improve his techniques, and remaining in the dark and never touching the subject matter again. In the end, he decided, with profound resignation, to wait until lord Daigo brought it up.

_This is how things are supposed to be_ , he told to himself as he got up and fixed his clothes. Next, he folded the futon, trying to forget everything that had happened on it. He failed. Closing his eyes only made it worse, because then he could feel, as ghosts, the hands of the young lord on his skin. He could feel his mouth, touching him and kissing him in ways he had never imagined possible, bringing him a joy as deep as the shame he felt right now as he recalled them. Had he failed to give lord Daigo that same intense feeling of joy? In the end, he managed somehow to fold the futon and put it away, deep breath after deep breath.

Once he was done, he cleaned the young lord's room the best he could before leaving to his own quarters, not bothering to plan what to do next. Whatever had to happen would happen, and he would follow the course of his life wherever it took him. Or so he told himself.

Life would be easier if he could just stop thinking. Stop feeling.

As he walked, he felt grateful for his headache; it gave him something to focus on that was not his current sentimental situation. But then one of the servants found him and told him lord Moushinosuke wanted to exchange a few words.

It turned out that Moushinosuke had a few regrets of his own. With all the commotion the night before, he forgot to announce his nephew as his legitimate heir. On the other hand, he had been able to convince Gentle to keep lady Aimi's secret, which was far from a small victory.

"We just had a feast last night," Moushinosuke said. "Asking the lords to gather again tonight would be bothersome. Everyone has their own business to attend to."

Utsusemimaru nodded in agreement, although he could not understand why anyone would find it bothersome to be summoned to their lord's presence. He was always willing to drop everything at any moment to go to him. Well, if he needed to be honest, he would drop everything except lord Daigo.

Lord Daigo…

Utsusemimaru wondered where he could be right now, where he had gone that morning, if he had returned to his room, if he had expected to find his lover there…

"Ucchii?" Moushinosuke asked.

The warlord sounded amused, yet his voice startled the samurai, who bowed deeply to avoid flailing.

"My deepest apologies, my lord. I was just thinking."

Moushinosuke chuckled and stroke his beard. "Speaking of, ask Daigo to join me for breakfast. The samurai from the land you and your comrades saved will wish to come to swear fealty as they promised. I want the both of you to take a few days to escort them here. That way, we can announce Daigo as my heir with all of them present. This task should take enough time for everyone else to recover from the feast."

A few days, lord Moushinosuke said. A few days on the road in the company of lord Daigo. Out there in the land where they had first kissed.

In any other circumstances, Utsusemimaru would have been delighted to hear it, but after what happened the night before, and taking into account that morning… No, he wouldn't be able to survive the ordeal without begging lord Daigo to give him another chance and take him again. And then again and again, until he could do it right. To the point that finishing the actual mission would become… complicated. He had always known that he would enjoy sharing his body with someone else. Yet, given his usual demure behavior, it surprised him to realize how strongly he wanted to ask for more. It embarrassed him—to a degree. On the other side of his desire was lord Daigo. His natural charisma and unaffected beauty should have had this effect on countless people. People worthier than Utsusemimaru himself. The mere thought of his own unworthiness to ask for more than he had been given made him feel like a thousand needles had found the way to his heart all at once.

“Thinking again?” Moushinosuke asked.

"My lord,” Utsusemimaru said, and the fact that this time he neglected the apology made evident the state of his mind. "I will make sure to organize a proper escort. It will give the right impression,” he hurried to add. “Besides, I'm sure they will need someone who can help them rebuild the village the Deboss Army destroyed. If you excuse me, I believe our master carpenter would be useful.”

“You are keen to give work to Nobuharu, are you not?”

“He has done me many a kindness. This is nothing else but my way to repay him.”

“Very well. Do as you see fit. Meanwhile, go fetch Daigo, please.”

Utsusemimaru bowed once more and left the warlord’s presence to go looking for the young lord. He found him standing in the middle of in his room, combing his hair with his fingers and looking more enticing than any other man Utsusemimaru had ever seen. The samurai had barely regained his breath by the time the young lord turned around, and he babbled his way out of the situation the best he could, managing by some miracle to retain some dignity and not to fall prey to his lust and pounce on lord Daigo like a cat on a mouse.

He could not help but notice that lord Daigo looked disappointed. However, there was a mission ahead of them. There would always be time to talk about this later—as soon as Utsusemimaru stopped dreading the worst possible outcomes. Which, he promised to no one in particular, would happen in due time. Whenever that may be.

* * *

"We don't need an escort, Uncle," King said. They were about to finish breakfast when Moushinosuke explained the mission. King did not oppose it, but he had problems understanding this detail in particular. "Ucchii and I already went there and came back within a day. We have our strength and our Zyudenryuu friends; we can protect the new samurai with no problem."

"I don't doubt either of you, Daigo," Moushinosuke replied between bites. "Nor the Zyudenryuu. The point is to send the right message. We need to tell our new comrades that we have the resources and the power to protect them in normal circumstances where the Kyoryuugers are not needed."

_Then why are you sending two Kyoryuugers?_ would have been the obvious follow-up question. Yet, this time, the answer was plain: Moushinosuke would not be sending Kyoryuugers; he would be sending both his closest relative and heir and his bodyguard. The idea, in turn, made King remember that he was far from feeling enthusiastic about his future inheritance and, of course, that he had already found a perfect way around it. Regardless of the current status of their personal relationship, King still believed Ucchii was better suited for ruling than he himself.

"Uncle, there's something important I need to discuss with you." Preferably before he forgot about it again. "It involves Ucchii, so…" So maybe we should wait until he joins us, he thought of saying. However, despite his best efforts, upon saying the samurai's name out loud, King trailed off, his mind invoking the image of the samurai. His smile, the spark in his eyes. The tight grip of his hand on his sword, and the grace of his movements.

He was brought back to the present when Moushinosuke hit his thighs with his hands, a movement loud and forceful and yet lacking all violence.

"Nephew!" he exclaimed, sounding and looking amused, "I know what you are going to say, and I do not mind."

That caught King completely off guard. It did not make sense with all the previous instances in which Moushinosuke had spoken about the subject. Nevertheless, King grinned and felt relieved.

"Seriously?"

Moushinosuke nodded. "Seriously. If both you and Ucchii agree to it and remain discreet, no one should mind what you do in private."

_Oh…_

That had been both not what King meant and a very nice thing to hear. He decided to start by addressing it before going back to his previous intention.

King bowed and scratched the back of his head.

"Ah… Thank you, Uncle. But I think Ucchii does mind a little. He's been acting weird all morning."

Moushinosuke scratched his mustache. "As far as I know, it's the first time he's been in this kind of relationship. While Brave in other areas, about this he is shy. Talk to him and you'll know for sure."

King's spirits rose again, back to their normal heights. His uncle made sense. He needed to make Ucchii talk honestly about his feelings. "I will! Thank you, Uncle!"

Moushinosuke smiled and continued, "Do it during this trip. Remember, even if there are a lot of people around, you have the authority to tell them to leave the two of you alone."

King nodded as he thought about it. He was of the opinion that asking nicely should suffice under most circumstances. However, his uncle meant well, and he did suggest it as a last resource.

At that moment, Ucchii opened the door and kowtowed at the entrance.

"We are ready to leave," he said. "Lord Daigo's luggage is already packed and on the horses."

"Thank you, Ucchii," Moushinosuke replied.

King got up and said his goodbyes to his uncle.

"We'll be back as soon as possible."

"Thank you, Daigo. Ucchii, bring him back in one piece."

"Yes, my lord," the samurai replied. His voice was full of strength, although he spoke without looking at the other two men.

King walked past Ucchii to leave the room and, as he did so, he noticed him flinching. He preferred not to comment on it so they would not start discussing things in front of his uncle, and went straight to the stables.

He had walked for about two meters when he heard Ucchii standing up to follow him, always keeping that same distance between them. King thought of asking him to join him by his side as usual, but decided against it this time around. If Ucchii found adhering to these customs comforting, then he would let him. They would have enough time to talk about all of this later on during the afternoon.

* * *

_This is how things are supposed to be_ , Utsusemimaru repeated to himself as lord Daigo continued to walk in front of him without scolding him for staying behind. _This is my place. Right here. Not by his side._ That was, simply, the reality of his station in life.

Reality. The truth. How it should be. Those things had sounded so appropriate when they were just a theory. But now that Utsusemimaru faced them, he could barely withstand the pain. However, it was his duty to endure and to press on.

They reached the stables in complete silence to Utsusemimaru's simultaneous relief and worry. On the one hand, he did not have to explain his feelings. On the other, lord Daigo had always been so talkative before… Worse yet, his somber mood did not extend to everyone. He greeted the stable hands with the same cheerfulness as ever, and even Yuuki the horse received gentle pats and some cooing from its master. Much to his shame, Utsusemimaru found himself jealous of the poor creature.

Then, Nobuharu arrived alongside the messenger Utsusemimaru had sent to retrieve him. The man carried a bundle on his back, presumably his clothes, since Utsusemimaru had requested as much.

"Glad to see I'm on time!" he said as he dismounted and went straight to lord Daigo. "Hello! I'm Udo Nobuharu. A pleasure to meet you!"

The young lord grinned with his usual energy. "I know who you are! I've seen you working around the castle." He bowed his head. "A pleasure to meet you too! I'm sorry I didn't go to introduce myself earlier."

Utsusemimaru watched the exchange of pleasantries in silence, while at the same time realizing it made more sense to be jealous of a fellow human being than of a horse—even if it had been his idea to have Nobuharu tag along to begin with.

"It's alright! You were busy with training, I heard. And I do know how difficult it is to _**herd**_ people when they don't want to."

A heavy silence fell on the stables as the samurai and servants around them tried to process what he had just said. Utsusemimaru took the chance to place himself between Nobuharu and lord Daigo, facing the latter.

"My lord, it is imperative that we depart as soon as possible."

"Sure! I'm all set," Nobuharu said, pointing out at the bundle over his shoulder.

"You're coming too?" lord Daigo said. He had moved around Utsusemimaru so he could see Nobuharu again, smiling widely and happily, and Utsusemimaru's stomach twisted into all sorts of knots. "Come ride with me so we can become better acquainted. Ucchii will take care of everything. Right, Ucchii?"

Utsusemimaru held his jaw in its place by mere force of will. "Yes, my lord."

With that, King and Nobuharu left together without Utsusemimaru getting the encouraging pats on his shoulder he thought he deserved. It took him a moment of breathing slowly to recover from the coldness that overwhelmed him. Then, it took him even longer to make sure everyone and everything was on its way and in its proper place in the caravan. It was his own fault for improvising such a large committee in only a couple of hours. As he rode around the entourage giving orders and instructions, he fought to keep in the fringe of his mind other matters like the laughter shared by Nobuharu and the young lord.

By the time he reached them, they had already become fast friends to the point the latter had given the former a nickname of his own: Nossan, given his tendency to make old-man jokes. A few hours later, when the group stopped for lunch, lord Daigo welcomed everyone who wished to approach his circle, and so they all ate while laughing and singing.

Utsusemimaru was not explicitly invited, so he spent the whole time in the back, tending the horses. Someone had to, after all.

Things did not change when they resumed their journey. Utsusemimaru, miserable as a wet cat, watched how lord Daigo and Nobuharu exchange amiable words all the way.

Why did he ever think this would be a good idea?

After hours as long as years, they reached their destination: the town they had saved from the Deboss Army, where the local samurai had set up camp as they trickled in from the rest of the territory.

Utsusemimaru hurried so he could make the formal introductions between the young lord and the representative of their new allies. However, even for that he turned out to be unnecessary. The representative was one of the samurai freed from Candelira's carts, and thus he and lord Daigo had exchanged words before.

"It is an honor to see you again so soon, King-dono," the man was saying when Utsusemimaru joined them. "Am I correct in believing you will guide us to see lord Moushinosuke?"

"You are," lord Daigo replied. "I'm sorry about your lord, though. I didn't have the chance to meet him, but he fought the Deboss Army to protect you. He was Brave."

The other samurai nodded. "He was one of the first to race into the battle as soon as the treachery was discovered. We are deeply sad, but we will always remember how he fell in battle protecting his people." He made a brief pause to honor the dead and then he continued. "Now, though, it's time to prepare for the future. As promised, we will honor our word and pledge to serve the man who helped us in our time of need."

Formulaic words, but they did not seem to be lacking in sincerity, Utsusemimaru thought.

From what he had heard, they had had a good master. Not as good as Moushinosuke—no current warlord was as good as Moushinosuke as far as Utsusemimaru was concerned—but not a terrible one either. His land had coexisted in peace with Moushinosuke's for some time, which was why they had dared to ask for help upon their lord's demise—and most likely why it had been granted.

This move on their part made sense from several perspectives. In other circumstances, they would have quarreled among themselves until one of them seized power—or until a different warlord, taking advantage of the turmoil, annexed the territory for his own use. However, they had already been targeted by the Deboss Army, an evil without precedent in the entire world. In the name of self-preservation, they folded into the shadow of the one place where they could find Deboss's sworn enemies. Yes, the Kyoryuugers were duty bound to help everyone in need, regardless of where they came from. But they could have risked falling from Moushinosuke's grace, something Utsusemimaru was grateful did not happen. It was not time for internal conflict; unity would make all the difference.

"Is everyone here yet?" lord Daigo asked.

"Not yet, King-dono. Those who remain indecisive have until dawn to make up their minds."

Lord Daigo nodded. "We'll wait until tomorrow, then. Ucchii, can you make sure everyone from our side is settled? I want to meet the samurai who are here so far and then take Nossan to evaluate the damage."

So, Utsusemimaru had been yet again banned from his presence.

He bowed. "Yes, my lord."

"Oh, and by the way, I'd like to speak to you later tonight. In private."

And then this unexpected request. It took Utsusemimaru a moment longer than was strictly necessary to bow again and voice his compliance.

As the young lord walked away, Utsusemimaru wondered what the subject of that conversation could be—or, alternatively, whether it would be a conversation at all. It could also be a euphemism. For a brief moment, it crossed the samurai's mind that the second would be preferable. More manageable. But whatever it was, he would face it with honor and dignity.

He took a deep breath and hurried off to follow his orders.

* * *

Dogold roared and roared inside the chest, unsure of whether anyone could hear him. It was all he could do.

He hated it; he hated everything. He could not move. He could not see. He could only lie there and wait. But wait for what? Or for how long?

_You won't be forgotten_ , Chaos had said, but that could mean years, if they went straight ahead to conquer the Earth. They could also be defeated. Not to sound pessimistic, but it had happened before. So he could as well stay there forever.

He roared again and the noises from outside told him that he had scared a Zourima into tripping on a bucket. It made sense: it was around the time of the day where they cleaned the rooms. Fine. Dogold could turn it into an advantage. All Zourima were terrified of him—and for good reason.

"Hey, you!" he called in his most menacing voice. "Open the chest!"

There was a startled yelp and then silence.

"I said, _open the chest, you little disgrace._ "

Then, some chatter. There was not one Zourima, but two of them. The creatures seemed to have a language of their own, and Dogold could only ever get the gist of what they said through body language, something he did not have access to in his current condition. But Zourima were cowards—it was just a matter of seeing of whom they were more afraid: Dogold or Chaos. Given his temper and his tendency to strike at the slightest provocation, Dogold might still get lucky. Especially if he did not give them time to think.

" _Hurry up! I don't have all day!_ "

More chatter, faster and high-pitched.

Dogold roared again. If he had had vocal chords he would have injured himself. It was a shame. He would have loved to hurt Utsusemimaru's vocal chords. But he would get the chance. He would prove himself once and for all this time.

A long moment of silence followed. So long that Dogold thought he had been abandoned for real. But then the lid opened. Timidly, as two Zourimas pushed it up. They were shaking in fear. It had taken them that long to decide that they feared Dogold the most in the end. They stared down at the Rageful Knight, as if waiting for instructions—or an excuse to close the lid and run away.

"About time! Now, take me out of here!" he told the Zourima.

One of them kept the chest open as the other did as Dogold commanded. Piece by piece, just as he was put inside, he was taken out and placed carefully on the ground.

As soon as he was out, Dogold trapped the Zourima not holding the lid, and with that, he was back.

He stretched himself. Far from an ideal body, but it would do for now.

He turned around at the sound of a thud. The other Zourima had dropped the lid of the chest and was now staring at him, shaking.

"Go away. You get to live another day," Dogold said. He was promptly obeyed.

Dogold left as well, after Chaos and the other Knights. But not before he took the enchanted weapons the priest kept inside the same chest he put Dogold in. If Chaos had not wanted him to use them, he should not have left them where he could see them.

The Rageful Knight knew where the ceremony should take place, so he would go there. The Kyoryuugers were bound to go there as well and engage in battle.

"This time you are mine, Utsusemimaru-chan," he sing-sang as he weighted the daggers he held in each hand. "This time you are mine."


	9. Chapter 9

"I will allow it," Gentle said to Amy the day after the feast. They were both kneeling down in front of each other in the tea room. The man had made sure to lock the door so they could have this conversation. "Not only because lord Moushinosuke made a great point about how the Kyoryuugers are important, and because lord Daigo seems to have a soft spot for you, but also because it will bring you and your fiance closer together."

_We're already best friends_ , Amy thought, but did not voice it. She should instead be glad about how she would not miss any more missions in the future—and about how she and Souji could use this to keep pushing their wedding further away. Maybe even get rid of the engagement at some point in the future.

"Alongside your responsibilities as KyoryuPink," Gentle continued, "you are expected to fulfill the ones of lady Aimi, the young lady of this house. Therefore, we will now focus on the tea ceremony."

"Yes," she replied as she took a deep breath and got ready to begin.

Amy did not share Gentle's enthusiasm, but she had gotten away with so much already she did not feel she had the right to complain, not matter how boring the tea ceremony was.

Before she could start, though, salvation came in the shape of a feathery figure that appeared in the middle of the room—and who now knew he could speak freely in the present company.

"The Deboss Army is on the move!" Torin exclaimed, snapping his fingers. He sounded agitated, a rarely seen state for him. "They are ready to awaken Deboss!"

Amy stood up as fast as she could—which was not as fast as she wanted due her kimono. Now this she could be enthusiastic about. Not because she liked the idea of the enemy getting so close to success, but because she could get out of there.

"I'm on my way!" she said.

Gentle sighed loudly to call Torin and Amy's attention. He had stood up and was dusting off his clothes. "Very well. I will take care of things here so lady Aimi won't be missed. How long will this mission take?"

"There aren't set times for this, Gentle!" Amy said. A little too forceful, which earned her a pointed glance from the servant. She pouted slightly in answer.

"However, that would be correct," Torin said as if he had not noticed anything. "Battles have their own pacing. I will make sure she's back as soon as it's all over, though."

_Provided we win_ , was left unsaid.

"Master Souji will be joining you, I gather," Gentle continued.

Torin nodded. "I will go alert KyoryuBlack and KyoryuGreen immediately. Gold, Blue, and Red are already close to the site. Nevertheless, we must hurry."

Gentle nodded slightly. "Go on, then," he said. "Save us all, lady Aimi."

The statement took her by surprise. He sounded proud. She risked to look at his face and, even though it remained expressionless, his eyes shone. She felt odd, but she even dared to offer him a small smile before changing into her KyoryuPink suit.

Meanwhile, Torin disappeared in another beam of light and a tornado of feathers.

"I don't understand why he did not take you with him," Gentle said as he tried to pluck one of the feathers from the air before they vanished.

"He has his reasons, I guess," Amy answered, scratching the chin of her helmet with a finger. To be honest, she did not know either, but she had never thought of asking. She would next time.

"I'll come back as soon as possible!" she continued as she opened the door of the tea room.

"Please, be careful, lady Aimi," Gentle said.

Amy turned around before stepping out of the room and saw him sitting down to prepare himself some tea. She felt moved. Maybe she had misjudged him after all. But she would come back to this later. Now, she had work to do. She had a world to save.

Amy ran to the outskirts of town. As she got ready to summon Dricera, Ian and Souji jumped down from the closest roofs and landed next to her. Even though they could not see it through her helmet, she smiled at them, and she chose to believe they answered in kind.

To know their identities, to be able to clearly picture their faces in her mind's eye, was comforting and meant everything to her.

"I'm glad you two could join us this time around," Ian said, smug yet not unkind.

Amy had learned by then how this was his way to show fondness for other people, just like Souji did it despite his perennial grumpiness.

"It was bound to happen," Souji replied, making an effort to sound dry and dignified, proving Amy's unspoken point.

"And now you won't get rid of us!" Amy exclaimed.

Ian chuckled in response. "I see. Fine. Let's go!"

The three left the town together once their Zyudenryuu arrived, making this the first time Amy felt her spirit truly rise as she was on her way to the battlefield.

* * *

King sat down cross-legged in the middle of his tent, happy to realize that, regardless of how it had started, the day had not been an utter disappointment. He did find comfort in his uncle's words; he had the opportunity to travel in good company, and he got to meet a wonderful person in the figure of Nossan. To meet him properly, since he had spent the previous night having fun with his family and the rest of the townspeople.

King had avoided telling him that he knew about his secret identity because, unlike the night before, most of the people around them were neither Kyoryuugers nor close allies—despite Ian's protests, he did have a sense of propriety. He would mention it later, though, once he made sure they were alone. Right now, though, Nossan offered his services, knowledge, and expertise to the people who had seen their houses destroyed by the Deboss Army. Ucchii had made the right call asking him to join them for so many reasons.

He wondered if Ucchii knew about Nossan being KyoryuBlue. Chances were high; his jokes were an instant giveaway. In any case, there was no way Ucchii did not trust Nossan. Otherwise, he would not have allowed them to ride together for hours while he remained in the back of the group. Even when they had stopped to eat, he had remained afar.

King would have liked to ask him to join them, but the incident that morning made it clear that Ucchii needed some space. Yet, they really needed to talk, and soon. While they still remembered everything clearly, not when it had become cold remorse. Ucchii had grimaced when King asked him about it, but he seemed willing to discuss it. That was a good sign. A sign to not abandon hope of the two of them becoming a couple. Long-term lovers.

As he waited, King did not rehearse any kind of speech. He did not need to. He knew what he wanted to say, and he would go about it as clearly and simply as he could. Which is what he did as soon as Ucchii walked into the tent, before he could kowtow or even bow his head.

"Ucchii, I want to sleep with you again."

"King-dono…?" Ucchii mumbled after a long moment of gaping.

"So, what's your answer?"

Ucchii knelt down in front of King. Or more like he let himself fall down on his knees.

At the same time, King scored a mental victory because Ucchii had called him 'King-dono' instead of 'lord Daigo' or 'my lord.' Small victories still counted.

Ucchii's hands curled into fists as they lay on his thighs, and he pouted as he struggled to find the words.

King tried to be patient, but when the samurai fell down from his kneeling position to land on his butt, looking at him like an scared rabbit, King realized he was leaning forward and staring.

"Oh, sorry…" he said and started to smile as part of his apology, when Ucchii scrambled to kneel back up.

"King-dono, it's not my place—"

"What? The… tent?"

Ucchii shook his head. "To express my desires. To speak my mind."

King pouted. "But it is! I want to hear it!"

Ucchii kept silent for another long moment, biting his lip, looking away from King, and fighting an internal battle.

King never knew what thoughts Ucchii was struggling against, but in the end Ucchii started to blurt out his mind.

"This morning you left without waiting for me to wake up, and—and all the time you spent with Nossan-dono today—!"

The idea was left hanging, incomplete. Yet, the meaning was clear. Despite it, King felt confused. He could understand the hurt Ucchii felt upon waking up and finding his lover gone with no explanation, even if it had not been on purpose. But… _Nossan._ To be jealous of Nossan of all people. He was good man, but King did not find himself attracted to him in that way. However, if this was the problem, it was a straightforward one with an easy solution: all King needed to do was to explain and apologize.

As King opened his mouth, a wind rose in the tent and Torin appeared between them in his usual beam of light. "The Deboss Army is on the move! KyoryuGold and KyoryuRed are needed immediately!" he exclaimed.

King and Ucchii exchanged only the briefest of looks before springing up.

"We'll finish this later," King said.

Ucchii nodded. "Yes," he replied. "After we finish this mission."

With nothing else to add, both of them followed their mentor outside the tent.

* * *

Traveling the human way was slower and more boring than Dogold would have wanted, but it was the only way to avoid being detected by Chaos, who thought him trapped in the chest. But that didn't mean he would get there late.

Preparing for the ceremony to wake up Deboss would take some time. Everything would have to be done in the right order and be in its proper place. Chaos's preoccupation with ritual, usually a source of annoyance, this time became an advantage.

Besides the preparations being time-consuming in themselves, with the quality of the help Chaos had to suffer through—namely Luckyuro and his all around incompetence—they were bound to take longer than expected. Maybe even until dawn.

As he expected, Dogold did not find much activity on his way out of the lair. Chaos and the Knights took most of the Zourima and the Cambrima with them to help them during the inevitable confrontation with the Kyoryuugers. Their enemy had some way of knowing when the Deboss Army was on the move.

Until then, as long as they could collect the feelings of the targeted humans, it did not matter how many monsters the Kyoryuugers destroyed. Today Deboss must prevail. The Kyoryuugers would have to be defeated for good—but not before Dogold could take possession of Utsusemimaru's body.

The experience of possessing KyoryuRed had been fantastic, beyond Dogold's wildest expectations. All that raw energy at his command… He could have conquered—could have destroyed—the planet and then laid waste to so many more. But he just could not remain angry. KyoryuRed had been completely furious at first, but then he had to do that emotional thing about forgiveness and break both the spell and Dogold himself in the most humiliating of ways. It was Red's fault that Dogold got in trouble with Chaos in the first place. But he would get his revenge. Red would be the first one to be eviscerated by Utsusemimaru's hand.

Dogold knew first-hand how easy it was to rile up Utsusemimaru. Once he had him, it would be easy to keep him in a constant state of continuous rage. He was that kind of person: self-righteous and stubborn in his self-righteousness. The samurai had proved as much every time they fought.

Dogold shuddered with delight as he thought of making Utsusemimaru watch as he used him to destroy and burn village after village, to cut the throats of everyone in sight. Not only threats this time, but the actual deal. Utsusemimaru would be his forever.

He could barely wait.

Dogold ran through the forest until he found a horse he could use. Lacking the time to properly dispose of the previous owner, he contented himself with hitting the human's head with the handle of his sword to disorient him before leaping atop the creature. The animal was terrified of Dogold, but that was fine; it would run faster that way.

* * *

One of Lord Daigo's signature characteristics was his straightforwardness. Therefore, Ucchii should not have been caught by surprise with the angle he took. And yet…

The young lord had been clear and honest about what he wanted: to take Utsusemimaru to bed again and nothing else. The samurai had thought himself prepared for such an outcome, but in reality he had felt disappointed.

Furthermore, despite his best intentions, despite his resolution, he had dared to tell him about his feelings, which filled him with shame—both for the feelings and for having shared them. Yes, Utsusemimaru had only obeyed lord Daigo's request. That did not make it better, but at least it had not been unprompted. Another mitigating fact: lord Daigo did not look angry, just confused.

The samurai had not decided if Torin's arriving when he did worked in his favor or not, but it had served to distract them. That would give Utsusemimaru time to come up with an adequate apology, since erasing his words from lord Daigo's mind would be impossible.

But Torin was talking, so he made himself pay attention. The news was, indeed, worrying.

"Have you told Nossan yet?" lord Daigo asked.

"That would be Nobuharu-dono," Utsusemimaru said for Torin's benefit.

"So now you know the identities of all your comrades," Torin replied, stroking his mustache. "Yes, I have told him. He's getting ready as we speak."

"We'll go join him, then!" lord Daigo said.

Torin nodded and snapped his fingers. "I will see you at the rendezvous point. Be prepared. This might just be our toughest battle yet."

Once Torin left, Utsusemimaru turned around to face lord Daigo and ask him if Nobuharu knew his identity had been discovered—and was promptly kissed. A quick kiss. Short. Chaste and sweet. Nevertheless it shook him all the way to the core.

"For luck," lord Daigo said.

"I—," Utsusemimaru shook his head and sputtered the first thing that came to mind. " _We_ will need more than luck, King-dono."

Lord Daigo grinned and nodded. "It's just an expression. It sounds like this is going to get wild, but we'll finish what we started in the tent once it's all over."

"Of course," Utsusemimaru said despite wishing with all his might to avoid that conversation altogether.

These random demonstrations of affection by lord Daigo only made him wish for more. Not only more kisses, but a different kind of relationship than that of a lord and the retainer he occasionally took to bed. To spend his days side by side with lord Daigo, to see him as relaxed and cheerful as he was all day with Nobuharu beside him— But he knew he should never give voice to his wishes.

_Don't ever say it, Ucchii—Utsusemimaru. Don't you ever dare to say it_ , he told himself.

Perhaps once the next battle was over, he could drag him to a discreet location and just fall to his knees… He shook his head to dispel the image and took a deep breath. That line of thought would make his body react, and now was not the time. Instead, he followed lord Daigo's lead and danced alongside him to change into KyoryuRed and KyoryuGold. Then, the both of them ran all the way to meet with their comrade at the edge of the camp.

They found KyoryuBlue already suited up and waiting. It did not seem to surprise him much that the first thing lord Daigo did was to address him by his new nickname.

"I wasn't really trying to keep it a secret," Nobuharu said. "Not from you, anyway. Still, it's a bit disappointing you figured it out so soon. It took Ucchii a few days even with all the clues I gave him, you know?"

So Nobuharu called him by that nickname now too. Perhaps he should use his as well. For the sake of camaraderie.

"My apologies. Other matters occupied my mind, _Nossan-dono_."

Yes, that should do it.

Nobuharu— _Nossan's_ —dismay upon hearing his own nickname from the samurai's lips filled Utsusemimaru with a smugness he could only hope would not find a way to manifest outwardly.

"Here they come!" lord Daigo exclaimed before anything else could come from that exchange.

Thus, they were now on their way to face their sworn foe. To try to stop them once and for all.

* * *

Amy, Ian, and Souji arrived at the area Torin had designated for the Kyoryuugers to gather and plan their strategy. As they arrived, they saw Gabutyra, Stegotchi, and Pteragordon approaching in the distance. They all came from the same place, which was strange. Thanks to the servants’ gossip that morning during breakfast, Amy had heard about the mission Moushinosuke had assigned to his nephew and his bodyguard, so both of them coming together made sense, but Blue? Had he been with them all along? She made a mental note to ask them about it later.

She hopped off Dricera. Ian and Souji did the same from their own Zyudenryuu partners and joined them on the ground. During their trip, Black and Green had behaved less antagonistic than usual, and that made her happy. She had wanted this for so long, to see everyone come together like this. It had all happened because King had carelessly blurted out their secret identities. Or had it really been careless? Maybe he knew what he was doing, since he had done it in front of people who would keep their secret. Torin already knew their names and faces, even if he had respected their wishes and allowed them to stay secret. Moushinosuke was a good man who put his people first, and had the best reasons to be their ally. So yes, whether King had done it on purpose or not, his action had only brought them together. Amy could truly get behind this.

Blue was the only one whose identity remained a secret, but she had a hunch that secret would be out before the end of the day.

Red, Gold, and Blue soon joined them on the ground, and thus the team was complete.

"Hey, everyone," King said. "Sorry we're late."

"We just arrived here ourselves," Souji said.

"Ah. Good," King continued. Then, he gestured toward Blue. Here it came. "Here, every one! Meet Nossan! I nicknamed him myself!"

"Nobuharu! My name's Nobuharu!" Blue replied, clearing up Amy's doubts.

"But Nossan fits you better!" King noted.

As they argued, recognition dawned on Amy.

"Ah! You're the carpenter I recommended to Ucchii!" she said.

"Yes, I'm a carpenter. But I didn't know you were the one who got me the job."

"You fixed the door on my father's stable two years ago and did a great job. Besides, you were nice to me and let me help."

"Ah! I know who you are now!" Nobuharu—Nossan—exclaimed, and he bowed. "It is nice to finally know you."

He turned toward Black and Green, and they both shrugged.

“Ian,” Ian said.

“Souji,” Souji added.

Nossan scratched the top of his helmet. “I must have heard those names before…”

“We’ll have plenty of time to refresh your memory after the battle,” Ian said.

“When we have enough time for _refresh_ ments too!” Nossan added.

"… Now we've taken care of that," Ian said, "we need to start thinking about strategy."

King interrupted him. "I say we go straight up to them and punch them!"

Ian rubbed the front of his mask, most likely to avoid hitting King in the back of the head again. "No," he said.

“We're a fighting unit! We should fight!” King exclaimed.

“Strategy is important too,” Souji replied.

“That's right," Ian said. "We need to fight smart. We don't even know where they are."

King's shoulders dropped like a wilting flower. "Alright," he conceded. But his gloom did not last long. After a second, he took a deep breath and bounced back to his usual enthusiastic self. "Where do we start looking for them?"

"Right here!" Torin answered as he appeared behind them. "I apologize for the delay, everyone." He bowed and then continued. "I found the place where the ceremony to raise Deboss will take place."

King began bouncing in a fighting position. "Where is that?"

"Please, Torin, don't tell him before we decide on a strategy!" Ian said while everyone else nodded.

Torin looked from one Kyoryuuger to the next in quick succession before chuckling. Then he coughed into his hand and carried on. He picked up a branch from the ground and drew a map on the dirt before him. The Kyoryuugers formed a circle around him and stared at it.

As Torin explained, they decided on a strategy: Nossan, Ian, and Souji would take care of the Cambrima sentinels while the rest sneaked through and surrounded the Knights, Chaos, and the rest of their foot soldiers. Then, they would wait for Torin's signal to charge and stop them. Hopefully for good this time.

* * *

Dogold left the horse free at the base of the mountain. He did not have a use for it anymore, but killing it would be a waste of time. So he let it go and he watched as it ran away in panic, which was also satisfying in a way. But back to the business at hand.

The Rageful Knight needed to find a good vantage point on the top of the mountain and wait for the moment when the Kyoryuugers arrived. The moment when dear little Utsusemimaru would arrive.

Chaos had surely stationed a group of the foot soldiers as sentinels around the area. They would not stop the Kyoryuugers, but they could tire them out and slow them down.

As Dogold stalked the area looking for a lone Cambrima to take over, he began to prepare a plan to separate Utsusemimaru from the others completely. All his previous plans had been botched by the simple fact that Utsusemimaru had had back up. Thus, the solution was obvious. Now he would do it; he would show everyone that he was not useless. That it would be a mistake to lock him up inside a trunk ever again.

He caught the lone Cambrima he found by surprise, but it did not try to run away. Why would it? Dogold was a commanding officer, and it was not his place to question but to obey. Soon, the Cambrima's body was surrounded by the golden armor while the Zourima that had brought him there was left discarded on the ground to melt away.

The Rageful Knight stretched, testing that new body. A Cambrima was better than a Zourima. Stronger, but not by enough. But he would not have to endure it for long; he soon would get his claws on Utsusemimaru.

Next, Dogold reached a place with a nice view to watch the drama he expected to unfold down there in the valley. The scene was all set: Chaos and the other Knights were right in the middle, around the containers with the emotions that would release their master. Two circles of Cambrima, one inside of the other, would function as a shield. A good-enough plan. Dogold's, though, was to wait until the Kyoryuugers arrived and Utsusemimaru was distracted enough—and far from the others—so he could strike and take him over. For that, he would have to remain still and be patient.

Good grief.

He should have kept the horse to at least have something to distract himself with.

* * *

King, Ucchii, and Amy followed Torin through the forest in silence. Or, at least, Ucchii did.

"Sneakiness is more difficult than it sounds," Amy whispered to King.

"I know!" King whispered back. "Why can't we just barge in and punch them?"

"Stealth is currently our best weapon," Ucchii whispered in their direction, sounding like the stern teacher he sometimes was. King could even picture his frown under his helmet.

"Don't worry," Torin intervened. "We will punch them. But it'll be more effective if we surprise them first."

"Fine…" both Amy and King replied at the same time.

Surprised at their coordination, they turned to look at each other and then they bumped fists of mutual encouragement. That renewed their spirits and gave them strength to keep quiet for a while longer.

King loved having found a kindred spirit in KyoryuPink, someone who understood his complaints and whose itch to fight matched his. It was terrible that such a warrior, someone with this much fire in her soul should be forced to stay at home all the time doing things she did not enjoy. It was unfair. After all, if Ucchii got to cook and mend clothes and perform the tea ceremony whenever he wanted, Amy should be allowed to fight whenever she wanted to. He wished he could do something about it.

But, then again, maybe he could.

If his uncle had managed to convince Gentle to let her be a Kyoryuuger, then perhaps…

He stopped himself before finishing the thought. He had already decided that Ucchii should be Moushinosuke's heir. He had earned it with his love and devotion to the warlord. Furthermore, he was a good and noble man. He was worthy. He should take the title and the land and everything. He would do right by Amy. He cared deeply about her, and she had a great influence over him. Maybe he would even be able to peacefully break that engagement neither Souji nor Amy wanted. And all while King…

While King what? Escaped from all kind of responsibilities? Had fun around the world while Ucchii took care of the messes he would have otherwise inherited?

Now that he thought about it, that he really paid attention to the possible implications of his until then brilliant plant, he realized that he did not want that. What he wanted was to be with Ucchii. To stay at his side for as long as possible. That meant to stay and take part of the responsibility King had wanted to toss on the samurai so he did not have to deal with it.

He made an, "Nnnngggghh," sound to release some steam, but he had not realized he had flopped down on the ground into a lotus position until it was pointed out to him.

"King? Are you alright?" Amy asked.

King opened his eyes again to look up at his three friends, who were standing around him. He would have folded his arms, but they were already in that position.

"Ah. Yes, I'm fine. I was just thinking."

"Please, King-dono. It is not the time to get distracted," Ucchii said, offering him his hand to help him get back up.

King took it, relishing—despite his best efforts—in how solid, warm, and supportive Ucchii felt even through two layers of gloves and despite his scolding tone.

"I won't get distracted again, promise," King said with a firm nod.

With that, since no one had anything else to add, they continued moving.

King kept his word—although it helped that it took them less than ten minutes to reach a vantage point from which Torin could assess the situation and give the command to start the attack.

"The situation looks rather straightforward," Ucchii said.

"Does that mean we're following King's 'let's go down and punch everyone' plan?" Amy asked.

"Actually, I have a new idea!" King said. "Why don't we call the Zyudenryuu to stomp on them until they surrender?"

"That's… the same plan only on a different scale," Ucchii said.

"As tempting as that is," Torin said, stroking his beard, "we cannot risk destroying the containers in the wrong moment. We could end up helping them instead of stopping them. However," he added snapping his fingers, which served to bring King back up from a pout, "we can adjust Daigo's original plan."

"We punch everyone while being careful with the containers?" King ventured.

"And then we dispose of them safely!" Amy added.

"That's quite close to what I had in mind," Torin said.

"With all due respect," Ucchii said, "it sounds easy when you say it like that. But the execution might cause some problem."

"I am well aware of it, Ucchii," Torin answered. "But if we all work as a team—a true team—we might make it."

King place a hand on Ucchii's shoulder. He felt the Gold Ranger shiver under his touch. Despite it, he carried on. "Ucchii, we can do it. Together."

"I know we haven't always been the best at teamwork, but I feel we've grown much closer in the past few days," Amy said. "Trust us."

Ucchii nodded. "Yes. Yes, I do trust you. You are my team. My comrades. My… friends," he added in the end, his gaze fixed on the valley, where the enemy worked.

While King expected to become something more than a friend for Ucchii, he knew that was not the best moment to talk about it. So he just smiled. Then he realized they could not see his face, so he nodded once, firmly, for effect.

"Good! Try and stop us!"

"They _will_ try," Torin said. "But they won't succeed. Now, wait thirty seconds before launching your attack from this front. I'll go tell the others."

With that, he disappeared, leaving the three friends ready for the battle.


	10. Chapter 10

Torin appeared in the valley, a solitary figure, approaching the Deboss Army all on his own. He emerged from the bushes, hands hidden in his sleeves and his sword in its sheath. His feathers rested all in their respective places, smooth and sleek. A figure so dignified and powerful the Cambrima did not dare to attack him on sight.

Even Chaos, who was surrounded by three big jars, his Knights, and the foot soldiers, did not command them to charge against the newcomer.

"Where are your disciples, Torin?" he asked instead. "I find it hard to believe that you would join us on this happy day without backup."

"They are my friends," Torin replied. "Not my disciples. My students, perhaps, but not blind followers. However, if you have time to talk, there is still time for them to arrive."

"Or it may mean it's too late already."

"This land and its inhabitants remain untouched, so I stand by my original statement." He unsheathed his sword. "Furthermore, I plan to buy us even more time."

"Do as you wish. It will amount to nothing." Chaos raised his hand, pointed his finger at Torin and simply said, "Go," which prompted the Cambrima to break formation and strike.

"All those Cambrima against Torin? It hardly seems fair," Ucchii said. He, just like the others, had promised to wait for Torin's signal. Yet, his fingers stroked Zandar Thunder's handle, ready to spring to action. Only his discipline kept him hidden among the bushes on the side of the mountain.

"You mean fair for the Cambrima?" Amy asked. "Just look." She pointed at the battlefield, where Torin destroyed Cambrima after Cambrima with one swift movement of his sword after the other.

"They are meant to tire him," Ucchii said.

"They're meant to tire _us_ ," King replied. "Torin is making things easier for us when he calls us."

"So noble of him," Ucchii said, his voice a mix of admiration and concern.

King could picture the frown in Ucchii's brow and the tightness of his lips underneath his helmet, and wished they had the time for him to make that worry go away. He much preferred a smiling, happy Ucchii.

"There!" Amy exclaimed, pointing again at the valley, where Torin now traced a star with the tip of his sword as he flew a few meters above the ground. "The signal!"

"About time!" King exclaimed, hitting his fist against the palm of his other hand. He wasted no more time and ran toward the battlefield followed by his two friends.

From the other side of the valley, Ian, Souji, and Nossan did the same, all of them converging around Torin. Once they were all together, and without having planned it beforehand, the six of them naturally struck a pose that somehow managed to showcase the strength of their respective Zyudenryuu partners. At that moment, King felt a rush of extra energy and Brave surging thorough his body.

"It's going to get wild!" he exclaimed, and he meant it. "Try and stop us!" He also meant that, even if he already knew their enemy would try to.

Torin pointed at the spot where Chaos and the jars were. "Go, Kyoryuugers," he said, and the entire group launched forward to meet what was left of the Cambrima.

This time, they fought together, side by side, opening paths to each other so they could advance. One of them feinting a movement so their partner could strike from the side. King felt they now behaved more like the unit they were supposed to be than a handful of individuals who happened to be in the same place. This once, they were making real progress here, getting rid of the Cambrima in record time. King even got close enough to hear what the Knights and their leader said to each other. Although mostly because Luckyuro kept speaking in a loud voice.

"Is it time now?" Luckyuro asked, all bouncy. "Can I go for it?"

Chaos nodded. "Do it now. Aigallon!" he called, making the Sorrowful Knight jump.

"Yes! Coming!" he replied and went to stand next to Luckyuro.

King grabbed the arm of whoever was nearest. It was Ian.

"They’re planning something," King said. "We have to stop them!"

With that, he led the charge. Ian followed, but Luckyuro was too fast.

Before Red and Black could reach him, Luckyuro poured the contents of his watering can over Aigallon and a group of Cambrima, so they grew and grew and grew, like the monsters used to do. However. Knights were more powerful than regular monsters, so a giant Aigallon was bound to be a terrible foe.

"I don't know why we never did that before," Luckyuro said as he contemplated his work.

"That is a good question," King replied.

"Stop admiring the enemy," Souji said, taking a page from Ian's book and hitting the back of King's head.

"Right…" King said, and then he raised his fist. "Everyone! Call the Zyudenryuu!"

Their dinosaur friends arrived soon, just as their human partners dodged Aigallon's attempts to step on them.

"Ah! This is what we were waiting for!" the giant said as he saw them approach. "That our plan is going so well makes me want to cry!"

"I don't think this is part of your plan!" King said

Zyudenryuu and humans moved together for the first time, as though following an ancient and powerful dance, and soon the Zyudenryuu formed two enormous figures. King and Ian went inside one of them. Ucchii and Souji went to the other while Amy and Nossan helped Torin against Chaos and Candelira on the ground.

"Well, that's new too," Aigallon commented as he got into a fighting stance. "But it will make no difference."

"We'll see about that," Ian said. He spared a glance at King. "Young lord, are you ready?"

"I've told you before! Call me King!" he replied as the battle began.

They worked together to match Aigallon's every blow and even managed to land a few of their own.

"And I said I wouldn't!" Ian answered.

Despite his annoyed tone, his focus remained on the coordinated dance he performed with King to direct the battle against the Sorrowful Knight.

"But why?" King exclaimed.

"Because I know what it means! I learned English from my adoptive parents."

"I don't get it. People always end up calling me that anyway; me telling you is only a shortcut."

"You already have a title. You're the young lord, and someday you'll be the lord of this land. Be content with that!"

Ian's remark made King freeze, allowing one of Aigallon's hits to connect in the middle of the chest, rattling everything around them.

"What's your problem?" Ian yelled as he struggled to stay on his feet.

"Sorry," King managed to say as he did the same and even offered his hand to help Ian back up. The Black Ranger accepted it and they both carried on with the fight. As they did so, King gave his answer. "I'm not sure yet if I'll accept," he said.

"What? Why wouldn't you, _you idiot_?"

Ian's surprise led to the both of them suffering another strike, this time on the side of the head.

"I think Ucchii would make a better lord!" King said as he stood up. "And—" And he wanted to be free to come and go as he pleased. Although now, after having reflected on it, the words seemed to be on the selfish side.

"And what?" Ian pressed. He sounded angry, and his next punch was hard enough to make a dent on Aigallon's armor and make him cry—although most everything made him cry anyway. "I agree that Ucchii looks the part but, truth be told, that'd be too much pressure for him to handle on his own. I'm not saying your uncle is a bad lord, with how he's allowed foreigners settle down on his land. But with someone who’s seen the world and understands other people as a lord… I was hoping that maybe they could integrate more easily."

With 'they,' Ian meant 'I,'that was clear for King.

Ian had had a good life as the adoptive son of well-positioned merchants. Even if not a noble, he had had full access to anything he could have wanted to be happy. Good food, education, love from his family. Lacking was, though, the full acceptance of his neighbors. King had not noticed anyone being derisive toward him, but he had seen the funny looks some people threw at him. Ian masterfully hid the effect those had on him, but they should not have been easy to endure, regardless.

Another thing King could help with. Another reason for him to stay. They seemed to be piling up.

* * *

As the Zyudenryuu combined, Utsusemimaru understood why Torin had waited to tell them about this skill their friends had: the Kyoryuugers needed to stand together both literally and metaphorically for it to work.

In their previous state of disarray, such an arrangement would have been impossible. But now, he stood next to KyoryuGreen—next to _Souji_ —who in practice used to be grumpier than even KyoryuBlack. However, by then Utsusemimaru had seen his youthful face smiling as he shared a meal with lord Daigo. With a better understanding of where Souji's heart lay, Utsusemimaru now trusted him fully.

Utsusemimaru used to trust the Kyoryuugers mainly because they had also been chosen by Torin, and in turn lord Moushinosuke believed Torin had his priorities straight. So, except for Pink, whose enthusiasm and candor had earned a special place in the samurai's heart, it had been a mere chain of association. But thanks to lord Daigo, that was no longer the case.

The young lord had worked magic when he carelessly revealed everyone's identities. Although Utsusemimaru wondered whether careless was the correct word, and how much of a gamble it had actually been. Lord Daigo seemed keenly aware of human nature,so maybe he just pushed everyone into their rightful place on purpose. The point was that the whole team had benefited from lord Daigo's actions; he was someone who was willing to take risks and bet on the Brave in people's hearts, knowing they would do the right thing.

Utsusemimaru would do well to follow his example and start by trusting that lord Daigo himself would do the right thing regarding his inheritance. And, well, regarding Utsusemimaru himself.

"Are you ready, Ucchii?" Souji asked.

This time, the samurai expected the nickname, so he nodded. "I am ready, Souji-dono!"

With that, they launched a coordinated attack against their enemies. An energetic dance powered by their Brave and the combined strength of their hearts. It was an experience Utsusemimaru would cherish forever, that he would never forget, not even after he had performed a thousand dances similar to this one in other combinations with his fellow Kyoryuugers.

However, he could not wait to try this connection with lord Daigo—assuming he would stay in the Golden Land once this business with the Deboss Army was over.

As he thought that, Utsusemimaru scolded himself.

_What did I just say?_ , he thought. _I said that I would trust him and trust him I will! No matter what._

Yet, this moment of weakness, short as it was, did not come without damage. A Cambrima hit them on the chest since Souji was unable to get completely out of the way by himself.

"My apologies, Souji-dojo!" Utsusemimaru exclaimed. "I do not know what came over me."

Lies. He knew well what had come over him.

"You're yearning for the opportunity of doing this with King instead of me," Souji said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Utsusemimaru was left without words and gaping behind his helmet. To his shame, he could only stutter KyoryuGreen's name, not knowing if he offered an apology or asked for an explanation.

Souji carried on, regardless. He turned his face forward and began fighting again. "We saw you leaving together before the feast ended. It's fine, though. You should enjoy your youth while you still have it."

"Thank you…?" Utsusemimaru said, even if the advice came from a man over ten years his junior. Nevertheless, he tried to follow Souji's example and continue the battle.

"Besides, since you don't have any kind of engagement, there is nothing wrong with it."

Souji spoke without any kind of obvious resentment, but Utsusemimaru knew better.

"Souji-dono, you do not agree with your engagement with Amy-dono, do you?"

"Neither of us do. We keep trying to postpone it as much as possible, hoping our families will give up at some point."

"That's where the youkai feather comes in," Utsusemimaru said.

"And why we're so happy Torin is not one of them."

"You have Gentle on your side now, too."

"I wouldn't sing victory on that yet. Gentle believes that both of us being Kyoryuugers will strengthen our bond. We don't need that. We're friends already. She is important to me, just not in that way. She doesn't look at me the same way you look at King, either."

Utsusemimaru gaped again, but this once he could shake the impression off right on time to block a kick and push the Cambrima away.

"Maybe lord Daigo will be able to do something about it," Utsusemimaru said. "When he takes his uncle's place. He would be able to talk with your families. He has a way of bringing out the best in people."

It was Souji's turn to pause. A very brief pause in which Utsusemimaru covered for him.

"Yes. That could work," the young man said. Then, he struck again. "If he wants to do so."

"He will. I will request that of him when time is right. Just hold your families back until lord Daigo can help you!" Utsusemimaru said.

Souji nodded, continuing his attack with renewed vigor and hope.

_King-dono, you truly need to do the right thing_ , the samurai thought as he tried his best to match his partner's energy.

* * *

"This is so annoying!" Dogold growled between the fangs of his mask. "I shouldn't have to wait! I should be down there!"

But at the same time, he knew why he had to remain hidden behind the trees and bushes on the side of the mountain while the Kyoryuugers took Chaos' guards out of commission with the usual ease. Watching a fight from afar was not fun at all. He itched to participate in it. He felt every fiber of his being, every single piece of metal in his armor resonate with the sound the weapons made as they clashed, and with the battle cries coming from both sides. However, the Rageful Knight managed to rein back his lust for battle by reminding himself what would happen if Chaos caught him disobeying orders.

If Dogold were to engage in combat before the right moment, right when he could capture Utsusemimaru without any margin of error, he would suffer the priest's ire. Before, when he had put Dogold inside the chest, he had been neither mad nor even upset. Only mildly disappointed for the Knight's failure. But if he found him out here after telling him to stay away from this, then he would not be as forgiving nor as merciful. He would not offer to fetch him back from whatever dark place he would put him in after their master had taken Earth for himself. The idea of spending eternity with his pieces scattered throughout the galaxy did not appeal to Dogold. Besides, with his luck, the chances of his helmet ending up under Luckyuro's bed were high enough to be concerning.

Then, speaking of the devil, Luckyuro watered Aigallon and some Cambrima who then grew to become giants.

Dogold's jaw would have fallen if it had not been a fixed piece of his helmet.

"We could have done that the entire time?" he roared at the same time he picked up the nearest boulder and threw it as far as he could. Both his scream and the rock went unnoticed because of the events down in the valley, though. But he was furious. _Furious_. Just thinking about all the destruction and misery he could have caused if he had thought of that first fueled the heat of his anger with such intensity all his metal could have melted.

It did not end there, either. The Kyoryuugers also had a secret under their sleeves. When they called their dinosaurs, the creatures combined, becoming stronger, to fight the Sorrowful Knight and his gigantic minions.

"Ha!" Dogold exclaimed in a mocking tone. "You deserve that, Aigallon!"

Below, Chaos and Candelira—and, therefore, Luckyuro—fought KyoryuPink, KyoryuBlue, and Torin himself to defend the containers. With his plan not going the way he had expected, the priest should be extremely angry. Another reason not to alert him of Dogold’s presence; he might take it even more personal. But beyond that, Dogold did not have any interest in that side of the story. He was more interested in what was going on with dear old Utsusemimaru.

Up there, in that contraption created and fueled by two Zyudenryuu, the samurai was literally untouchable. Dogold would now have to wait for the battle to finish to figure out his next step. He did not expect Aigallon to win, even if the Sorrowful Knight had a better chance than usual. But who knew. The past few days had been full of surprises.

"Ah! I knew it was you when I heard that roar!" Luckyuro said, coming right from the patch of forest behind him.

Dogold turned around to grab him by the throat, pressing him against the trunk of a tree. "What are you doing here?" he growled.

"I should be asking that, since we kind of left you grounded," Luckyuro replied with some effort due the strangulation—and yet as cheerful as usual, not believing for a second that Dogold could harm him for real. Worst yet, he was right. If Dogold could have cause him real harm him, he would have done it already.

However, that did not mean he had to let him go just yet.

"I asked first," Dogold insisted, pressing Luckyuro further against the tree.

"Fair enough. Fair enough." He cleared his throat—or tried—and began his explanation. "You know how I'm not the mêlée fighting type, so I was looking for other ways to help, and when I heard you I thought of coming up to see. But don't worry, I don't think anyone else knows you're here, and this'd be much easier if I could breathe…"

Dogold scoffed and released him. "Not the mêlée fighting type?" he repeated in a mocking tone, turning around to check on the battle. "Don't give me that. What you are is a coward."

"There are many ways to be useful in battle," Luckyuro muttered, rubbing his throat. "Like gathering intel and scouting and making things grow. That's what I'm best at."

Dogold spun around to look again at Luckyuro.

"You made Aigallon grow, yes," he said.

"That I did! It was a bit tricky, but I made it happen!"

"Do it again!"

"Sorry?"

"Do it again, Luckyuro! Make _me_ as big as Aigallon!"

"Are you sure? You're not even supposed to be here. Although… I think I could make a case of you forcing me to do it—which in a way you are—, but—"

Dogold hit a tree with his fist. Pieces of bark flew all over the place. " _Do. It!_ "

"Fine, fine," Luckyuro replied as he produced the watering can from his pouch. "You have a Cambrima in there, right? That'd make things easier. Oh, by the way, shouldn't we go about it down there in the valley?"

"No. Let's do it here. I have a plan."

"As you wish." Luckyuro climbed on a rock so he could pour the water over the Rageful Knight. "You are forcing me to do this. It's not of my own free will."

"Whatever. Just hurry!"

And hurry Luckyuro did.

The water covered Dogold, filtrating through his joints to wet the Cambrima he currently possessed. He did not feel any different through the process, realizing only that he was becoming a giant because everything around him quickly shrank.

"There you go, good old boy," Luckyuro said, contemplating his handiwork. "Have your fun and don't get in trouble. And, more importantly, don't get _me_ in trouble."

"You said that already," Dogold grumbled. But yes, he would have his fun. His first act, for example, was to tackle the metallic giant where his favorite samurai was.

"Guess who came back to play, Utsusemimaru-chan!" he said and then laughed as they both fell to the ground and rolled around the valley.

In the background Candelira yelled, and Chaos exclaimed something Dogold did not understand. But he could not focus on that; he needed to get this over with so he could both prove himself and avoid a punishment.

He was so close to victory now that—well, that it made him feel slightly less full of rage.

* * *

Things up there in the Zyudenryuu seemed exciting, but the fight going on in the ground was far from dull. Torin had engaged Chaos himself while Amy and Nossan fought Candelira and the remaining Cambrima. But there was supposed to be someone else around, and Amy could not find him.

"Where is Luckyuro?" she asked as soon as she had the chance to get close enough to Nossan.

"Haven't seen him in a while," he replied.

"He must be up to something."

As Amy said that, the trees above them rumbled and the figure of Dogold appeared, becoming bigger and bigger every second, until he reached the same size as Aigallon.

"Alright," Nossan said. "Now we know what Luckyuro is up to. He's _up_ _there_."

Amy nodded. Despite the joke, it was true.

KyoryuPink and KyoryuBlue were not the only ones who had stopped fighting. The rest of the Deboss Army were transfixed by the now giant sentient suit of armor that all of the sudden towered over the valley.

"Dogold? What is he doing here?" Chaos hissed between his teeth.

_So it's also a surprise for them_ , Amy thought. _Interesting_.

"They must be more divided than we expected," she said.

"He was probably grounded," Nossan said. "You know, for all the times he's failed to catch Ucchii."

As Nossan spoke, Dogold launched himself to tackle Souji and Ucchii.

"Oh," Nossan continued in a matter-of-fact voice. "He was grounded and now he's airborne! Look at that!"

Amy looked, even if this time around she could not help a groan.

Dogold impacted with their friends, making them lose their balance. Soon, they were rolling all around the valley, the Kyoryuugers trying to shake him off them while Dogold did his best to claw a hole in the Zyudenryuu.

"Souji!" yelled Ian.

"Ucchii!" yelled King.

Both Red and Black could be heard calling those names at the same time, so loud that they were easy to hear through the entire valley. They pushed Aigallon aside, throwing him into the mountain with such strength that they made him cry. Then they rushed to grab Dogold by the back of his neck to peel him away from their partners.

They managed to startle Dogold enough for Ucchii and Souji to kick him away from them. This did not sit well with the Knight, though. He unsheathed his sword and brandished it against the newcomers.

"How dare you interfere?" he exclaimed. "You're making me angry!"

"Everything makes you angry!" King pointed out.

"We will interfere every time to save our partners!" Ian said.

"In that case, I should jump in too!" Aigallon said. He had shaken off the hit he had suffered and got ready to help Dogold.

Amy and Nossan looked at each other. Without exchanging a word they knew what the other was about to do.

KyoryuPink called Dricera and Nossan called Stegotchi to fight against the Sorrowful Knight. Without Gabutyra or Pteragordon, they would not be able to combine as the others had. But that did not mean they could not help.

Stegotchi placed himself behind Aigallon's legs so Dricera could punch him from the front and knock him over. Once that done, they trampled all over him and bit him—and made him cry. Again.

"Well done, Kyoryuugers," Torin said.

His words made everyone react and spring again into action.

Chaos raised his sword against Torin once more, and Candelira led the few remaining Cambrima in a charge against Amy and Nossan. The Kyoryuugers and their mentor answered in kind, and thus the battle was reignited.

Chaos's attacks became more vicious. He pushed against Torin and forced him to back away. At first glance, he looked as calm and collected as he had presented himself before Dogold's appearance. However, his now hardened grimace reminded Amy of her father whenever he scolded her. So, perhaps Nossan was correct and Dogold had been grounded.

Maybe they could get him in more trouble.

She looked up. King and Ian were punching Dogold, keeping him away from where, Ucchii, his main target, was. Good. She had to go there and share her plan.

"Nossan! Launch me up in the air as high as you can! I need to talk to Souji and Ucchii!"

"Alright. But, for the record, we need to find a better way to communicate," Nossan replied as he interlocked his fingers to give Amy the boost she needed.

As the strongest of the Kyoryuugers, as soon as she placed the tip of her boot on his hands, he was able to launch her up, up, up! The highest she had ever been, all the way to the shoulder she needed to land on.

"Let me in!" she exclaimed as she turned to the right to face the huge ear.

A door opened and she went right in.

"Amy-dono!" Ucchii exclaimed.

"Is everything alright down there?" Souji asked.

"So far it is, I think, given the circumstances," Amy answered. "But I have an idea that will help us!"

Both KyoryuGold and KyoryuGreen nodded as they listened.

* * *

So close. He was so close now. About to tear that helmet open and get Utsusemimaru literally in his hand. He would have done it already if Aigallon were not such an useless piece of garbage. But it was fine. He could do this.

He could do this.

"I will get this over with once and for all!" he yelled as he fought harder than he had ever done.

"We _will_ get this over with!" came the response, and Dogold did not know to which Kyoryuuger it belonged. Only that it was not Utsusemimaru and therefore did not matter.

As Dogold tried to get rid of the one creature Utsusemimaru was not in, he thought he saw something coming up from the ground. But it was small, like a spec of dust. Nothing important either, and he had more important things to take care of at the moment.

Like stabbing a certain nuisance through the torso.

With a roar, he pushed and kicked and, as his enemy crashed to the earth, lifted his sword over his head.

Time to strike.

Yet, before his blade tasted his enemy, he got punched in the flank and lost his balance. That enraged him, partly against himself. Not paying attention had been a rookie mistake.

"You'll pay for that!" he exclaimed, pointing at all his enemies with one of his claws.

"No! You will!" came another voice. A female voice. That threw him off because KyoryuPink was supposed to be on the ground, not on those things. He was losing track of his enemies a lot today.

The anger that realization brought him energized him and he got ready to attack again. But then, the enemy in front of him locked hands with him, turned him around and then forced him to go backwards. Before he could figure out what was going on, the other Kyoryuugers charged with their shoulder and pressed on, and Dogold could no release himself. He tried shaking his arms and then kicking them, but the Kyoryuugers persevered and would not let go of him.

_They have a plan_ , Dogold thought. They were pushing him away from Aigallon and toward the mountain. Maybe they expected to press him against the rocks to stab him just as he had wanted to strike them with a sword. But he would surprise them. He would let them take him there, only to hit them with his head when they least expected it. Then, he would claw the Zyudenryuu open, beyond any possibility of repair.

Yes, he would do that. Make them sorry for attempting such a foolish plan.

So on he went, letting them lead him backwards, step by step. Letting them believe they had the upper hand.

And then…

_Crack._

A sound underneath him that coincided with a scream by Candelira, and that went all the way from his foot to the top of his head alongside a freezing terror.

Dogold knew what hat happened without having to understand what Candelira had yelled. The Kyoryuugers had tricked him into destroying the containers with the human energy they were going to use to bring their master back. All the Knights's hard work vanished into the air in an instant.

He also knew what would come next, and roared, cursing everyone around him with all his might.

Even when Chaos's ire hit him, the worst pain he felt was the one caused by his own self-inflicted humiliation. He had failed to put a single claw on Utsusemimaru during the entire ordeal, despite all of his efforts, and this would be his last attempt in a long, long time. The darkness that followed engulfed him, making the world around him disappear, showing him a kindness that even Dogold himself thought he did not deserve.


	11. Epilogue

Ian was the one who figured out what their comrades were trying to do, pushing Dogold that way toward the containers. So, as soon as he pointed it out, both Black and Red began to push.

"I can't believe he hasn't noticed," King said.

"He wants Ucchii so much nothing else matters to him," Ian replied.

King pouted. "Oh, yes? I want Ucchii as well. Let's see whose desire is stronger!"

With that, he gave the final push. The containers broke under Dogold's weight and, seconds later, the Rageful Knight disappeared from in front of them.

Meanwhile, the effect from Luckyuro's water wore off of Aigallon. Dricera grabbed him and tossed him to Stegotchi. They passed him between them for a while before they threw him to where Chaos and Candelira were. The latter caught her fellow Knight and helped him back to his feet.

Chaos, on the other hand, despite not having lost terrain to Torin, had stopped fighting. The containers, the sole reason for their presence in the valley, did not exist anymore. King was not entirely sure how many meters high he was up in Gabutyra, but nevertheless he felt the priest's seething all the way up there.

All the Kyoryuugers, Torin, and the Zyudenryuu turned to face the last few members of the Deboss Army.

"Maybe we should, you know, leave," Candelira ventured, still carrying Aigallon over her shoulder.

For a second, Chaos did not answer. More to calm himself than to evaluate the situation, for sure, since from every point of view, they had already lost. Finally, he scoffed and waved his arm. "We have nothing to do here," he said and, with that, they disappeared.

Torin sheathed his sword. "Well done, Kyoryuugers, well done."

Once more, his words prompted Kyoryuugers and Zyudenryuu to react. They all came together in the valley to celebrate, and King's reaction—after patting Gabutyra's head—was to take off his helmet, get a hold of Ucchii, take off his helmet, and kiss him. In front of everyone, and no one said a thing.

Except for Ucchii himself, who babbled a very surprised, "King-dono!" before starting a second kiss himself, making King grin at such boldness. "We still need to finish our conversation."

Ah. There he was, the responsible samurai. Time to repay in kind.

King pressed his forehead against Ucchii's. "We do."

"I've been doing some thinking, King-dono," Ucchii said. "But it can wait until we're back at the castle."

King nodded. "I know. I've been doing some thinking of my own. But you're right. It can wait."

Ucchii stiffened with King's words, but he relaxed again when the third kiss came along.

"It's fine. You have nothing to worry about," King said before the fourth.

"Promise?" Ucchii asked.

"Promise," King replied, and they would have followed that up with a fifth, a sixth, and maybe even all the way to a tenth kiss if the others had not started being very loud about wanting to go back home already.

King laughed and Ucchii, despite his face growing red, smiled as well. On the face of their friends' insistence, they could only oblige and postpone the rest of their kisses. And so, they began their way back to the castle.

* * *

Utsusemimaru worried when the young lord said he had been thinking. Despite the kisses and despite the samurai's own conclusions. Yet, he forced himself to be at ease. All the way back to the castle, he repeated to himself that he would trust him, as he had decided. Fortunately, all the Kyoryuugers agreed to return riding on their own Zyudenryuu, so there was no one close by up there in the air to hear Utsusemimaru's mutterings.

No one except for Pteragordon, who after a while began to scold him for both continuing to call lord Daigo by a title and for believing that Gabutyra would choose as his partner someone with a feeble heart.

"I would never dare to think anything of the sort," Utsusemimaru replied. "I know lord Daigo's Brave is steady as a rock, but this is the proper way to address—or to think about—him."

"Due the nature of your relationship, that is the opposite of the proper way. Call him and think about him the way he wants to be called and thought about, Ucchii."

The Zyudenryuu could not talk. Not with words, not like humans did. They communicated from soul to soul through their melody. Yet, Utsusemimaru heard the nickname with utmost clarity.

_So even Pteragordon…_

He sighed and gave up. He was Ucchii now and lord Daigo would be King from now on, and that would be it.

As soon as they arrived to the castle, the news spread. Everyone, including the townspeople, showed up to congratulate them and get ready for the second celebration in a week.

"Given the circumstances, but most of all because we held back the other one for so long, I will allow it," Moushinosuke said as he gave his blessing for the castle to be opened again.

"I thought it was because you were proud of me, Uncle," King said while pouting.

Moushinosuke rested a hand on his shoulder. "That too, nephew. That too."

King pouted harder, which prompted lord Moushinosuke to laugh. Torin followed suit and then everyone else. Even King himself.

"Go rest now," Moushinosuke continued. "You've earned it. Torin, you too. I will not accept any discussion on the matter."

Torin bowed his thanks. "Very well. I appreciate it."

Thus, the heroes were sent to either guest rooms or rooms of their own. However, King would not let Ucchii go his own way, and dragged him to his room.

"I can't postpone this any longer," he said when he grabbed Ucchii's hand.

Ucchii did not resist. This man was a force of nature even so soon after a battle. Besides, they did have that conversation pending and, knowing King, it was a miracle that he had managed to wait for that long.

However, in true King-like fashion, as soon as he closed the door behind him and as he was standing in front of Ucchii, he went straight to the point.

"I'll accept my uncle's wish for me to be his heir," he said with a solemn voice and a solemn face.

Ucchii covered his mouth with his hand, touched and moved by King's words and intent. Yes, they had been exactly what he had predicted—what he had wanted—but to hear them brought him a greater joy than he had dared to expect.

"King-dono," he said around the knot in his throat as he kowtowed at the same time. "I will serve you the best I can for the rest of my life."

But King would not have any of that. He grabbed Ucchii's arms and pulled him back up.

"I don't want you to serve me," King said. "I want you to work with me to make of this a better place. I want you at my side. Forever."

Despite Ucchii's initial inclination to remain in that position, he allowed himself to be helped to stand up. Once they were face to face, before Ucchii got lost in King's handsome features and gentle smile, he placed a hand on his cheek to caress those striking cheekbones with his thumb.

"Forever. I like that," he murmured.

"I'm glad. Because I do too," King replied, leaning forward.

Ucchii stopped him with a gasp, remembering something. “Then… there really isn’t anything between you and Nossan-dono?” he asked.

King couldn’t hold back a laugh. “I’m all for getting wild, but that imagination of yours is a little _too_ wild, Ucchii.”

Ucchii replied with a sheepish look, and they finally made it to the fifth kiss, and then more. In reality, they did not get any rest the entire afternoon.

* * *

"How is your hangover?" Torin asked the next day, standing next to Moushinosuke in the latter's garden.

"Nonexistent, thank you," the warlord replied, raising his eyes from the piece of paper he was reading. "The physician would not allow me to drink much alcohol during the entire party. In fact, every time he took the cup from my hand to drink it himself! Therefore, I expect he is the one with the hangover."

"He takes his job very seriously."

"Indeed. I am so lucky for having such committed people care for me." He smiled before continuing. "Speaking of which, I spoke with Daigo last night too. He is willing to become my heir."

Torin nodded. "I suspected that outcome."

"We also agreed that, since I'm still young and getting stronger and will, with no doubt, forget about my wound in a few weeks, and he's too much like his father, he'll walk the Earth for some time longer. And this time he'll take Ucchii with him."

"What does Ucchii say?"

"He's as smitten as my nephew, so he said yes. It will do him good. To know all those new peoples and places. He also promised to introduce himself as Ucchii to them."

Torin's feathers ruffled in surprise. "Really?"

Moushinosuke was grinning now. "He finally mellowed down into the nickname. That will also be also good for him."

"It will," Torin said, stroking the beard-like feathers below his beak. "Although this particular outcome I did not foresee."

"There is something else," Moushinosuke said, showing the piece of paper to his old friend. "I was left with some tasks of my own to work on while they’re away."

"Your nephew left you tasks?" Torin took a peek at them. "What could they be?"

"Ucchii was mortified, but Daigo knows no shame, especially when it's about what he feels is for the good of others. He will be a great lord." Moushinosuke began reading. "One is to smooth the path for the engagement between Yuuzuki Aimi and Rippukan Souji to be amiably broken. Two, encourage my subjects to be kinder toward foreigners, and three, teach everyone how to differentiate between you and a youkai. Well, that will be difficult without an actual youkai to show."

"I'm afraid I'll make it even more difficult for you. I'm about to make myself scarce for a while."

"You are going back to my brother."

"Yes. There is a lot to report. Besides, this is not over. The Deboss Army will try again, and there is a lot of work to do before we can uproot them once and for all."

"I understand, Torin. Please, give him my regards."

"I will. Don't worry, Moushinosuke."

They shook hands and, one moment later, Torin flew away from Moushinosuke's castle and land to meet the man to whom he had pledged loyalty. The warlord remained standing in his garden, making a solemn promise to himself that he would hold the fort for his brother, his nephew, and even for Torin. He would not be alone in this endeavor, even if his most trustworthy samurai would be also far away.

When all of them were to return, whenever that would be, they would find the land and the people waiting for them in a better state than the one they left it in. Because yes, Moushinosuke planned to follow that list no matter the cost. The Kyoryuugers had saved his land and his people, so it was the least he could do. They had earned it, and Moushinosuke prided himself in being a fair man. So, he turned around and got ready to give his orders to the first people he found awake.


End file.
